Global Health

GHealth News - The World Health Organization is taking part in the Paris Olympics in multiple fields, supporting the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and France to help make the world’s leading sport spectacle, which officially starts this Friday, healthy and safe for spectators and athletes alike. “Just as athletes and fans around the world have been preparing for the Paris Olympics, WHO has been working with the IOC and the Government of France to make sure these Games are healthy and safe for everyone involved,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “From promoting physical activity to protecting people from a range of health threats, WHO has been proud to play its part in making the Paris Olympics a success.” WHO and the IOC, close partners through a memor...

Shedding light on issues ranging from childhood survival to educational attainment and exposure to violence, a global dashboard will help policymakers, the health community and the public track progress on some of the critical factors influencing children’s health and their futures. Currently, 4.9 million children aged under 5 years die every year, with nearly half of these babies in their very first month of life. Based on current trends, 59 countries will miss the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target for under-5 deaths. During the 77th World Health Assembly, noting these statistics, countries committed to accelerate actions to improve maternal and child health and survival (Resolution WHA 77/5). Data is critical for these efforts, helpi...

GHealth News - Three of the biggest global health funders have joined forces for the first time in a $300 million partnership aimed at tackling the linked impacts of climate change, malnutrition, and infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance. The Novo Nordisk Foundation, Wellcome and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced the research partnership, focused particularly on finding affordable solutions for people in low and middle-income countries, in Denmark on Monday. Each will put $100 million into the three-year initiative. A key aim is to "break down barriers between often isolated areas of research", said Mads Krogsgaard Thomsen, chief executive officer of the Novo Nordisk Foundation. For example, COVID-19 showed that obesity can be a risk factor for the se...

GHealth News - "Disease X" is a name that the World Health Organization (WHO) has given to an unknown future pathogen with the potential to start a severe global epidemic. "There are things that are unknown, that may happen and anything happening is a matter of when, not if," Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) director-general, said during an expert panel in Davos. "So we need to have a placeholder for that, for the diseases we don't know that may come, and that was when we gave the name "Disease X,'" he said, explaining that the concept was first discussed in 2017 and has recently gotten "attention" online. The UN agency added it to a list of priority diseases that require accelerated research and development due to their potential to cause a pub...

GHealth News - The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the vulnerabilities of global supply chains, particularly impacting low- and middle-income countries' (LMIC) access to essential medical products. The concentration of global manufacturing capacity in a few countries and regions exacerbated this disparity, highlighting the urgent need for equitable solutions. Biological products, such as vaccines, and monoclonal antibodies, offer significant promise in combating global health challenges. However, the limited biomanufacturing capacity in LMICs and a shortage of a qualified workforce impede their production locally for national and regional health needs.  In response to the growing need, WHO is launching the Biomanufacturing Workforce Training Initiative. This initiative is coo...

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared loneliness to be a pressing global health threat, with the US surgeon general saying that its mortality effects are equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. WHO has launched an international commission on the problem – led by the US surgeon general, Dr Vivek Murthy, and the African Union youth envoy, Chido Mpemba – of 11 advocates and government ministers, including Ralph Regenvanu, the minister of climate change adaptation in Vanuatu, and Ayuko Kato, the minister in charge of measures for loneliness and isolation in Japan. It comes after the Covid-19 pandemic halted economic and social activity, increasing levels of loneliness, but also amid a new awareness of the importance of the issue. The WHO commission on so...

GHealth News - The latest photos for the World Health Summit taking place in Berlin, and discussing different global health issues. Source: World Health Summit

The World Health Summit brings you the world's leading international, inter-sectoral and inclusive global health conference that will set the agenda for a healthier future. October, 15-17, 2023JW Marriott Hotel BerlinStauffenbergstraße 2610785 Berlin& Digital 3 Days | 300+ Speakers | 100+ Nations | 60+ SessionsWith ceremonial opening and reception on Sunday, October 15 The World Health Summit’s central topics in 2023 include: Learning from COVID-19 for Future Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response Recommitting to Universal Health Coverage Sustainable Health for People and Planet G7/G20 Measures to Enhance Global Health Equity and Security Harnessing the Power of Digital Technologies for Global Health World Health Organization’s 75th Anniversary In...

GHealth News - The Virchow Foundation for Global Health is honoured to announce Rose Gana Fomban Leke as the 2023 Virchow Prize for Global Health Laureate. With this award, Professor Leke’s distinctive and exceptional lifetime achievements comprising outstanding contributions to global health, pioneering infectious disease research towards a malaria-free world and relentless dedication in advancing gender equality are recognized. Rose Leke, a distinguished scientist and immunologist from the University of Yaoundé in Cameroon, has dedicated her life as a researcher to eradicating malaria, addressing health inequities and structural disparities, and combating communicable diseases, making her an internationally celebrated advocate for global health. The Virchow Prize Committee states that...

GHealth News - Over the past 15 years, Germany has strategically expanded its role in global health against the backdrop of geopolitical developments, upheavals, and crises to become one of the largest political and financial contributors in the field. One of Germany's key priorities has been to fortify its strong but fragmented research landscape in global health. In January, 2020, a 5-year infrastructure programme from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF; costing approximately €3 million) culminated in the progressive establishment of the German Alliance for Global Health Research (GLOHRA), a national, interdisciplinary, and cross-institutional platform for global health research. Led by an interdisciplinary steering committee, the platform aims to foster innovative, equ...