The National AIDS Control Council (NACC) continues to strengthen partnerships with all stakeholders in the response to HIV and AIDS in Kenya. While recognizing that there is no single preventive approach to reverse the spread of HIV, the faith sector comprising of Faith Communities (FCs) a...nd Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs) have demonstrated sustained motivation and moral authority with resources and outreach capability to significantly reduce new HIV infections. In addition, they have the power to influence policy changes to address societal, cultural and structural factors that impede individuals’ capacity to prevent HIV infection. According to Kenya Demographic Health Survey (2014), over 97% of the Kenya population was reported to ascribe to religious affiliation.
more
The National AIDS Control Council recognizes the growing, organized and progressive inter-faith religious voice in the spheres of governance and development in Kenya. Across the country, the Faith Sector has been involved in HIV prevention, treatment, care and support to programmes towards... the HIV response.On behalf of the board and the NACC family, I want to thank the Faith Sector Working Group (FSWG) and the Faith Religious Leaders for their contribution in HIV prevention by recognizing their comparative advantage in moulding behaviors among the various populations. We pride in your ability of being able to reach millions of Kenyans at any given time. This is the more reason why NACC wishes to sincerely thank you for working closely with us on the HIV response.We appreciate the Faith Sector support to the provision of HIV and health care services provision which has facilitated access to health services even in the remotest parts our country. The role played by the Religious Leaders in addressing stigma and discrimination as the greatest barrier to access of HIV and Health services by PLHIV and other vulnerable populations is well acknowledged.Finally, our gratitude goes to the theologians who participated in the development of the Faith Sector HIV messages booklet, which provides a tool to facilitate the Religious Leaders with knowledge to address the gaps in the HIV response among the congregants.
more
Member States have requested WHO policy guidance on how to facilitate the implementation of national AMS activities in an integrated and programmatic approach. This policy guidance responds to that demand from Member States and is anchored in public health guiding principles in the human health sect...or. It aims to provide a set of evidence-based and pragmatic recommendations to drive comprehensive and integrated AMS activities under the purview of a central national coordination unit, National AMR steering or coordinating committees or other equivalent national authorities.
Available in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Chinese
more
This guide is intended to support national governments developing their national deployment and vaccination plans (NDVPs) for COVID-19 vaccines by outlining the roles, needs and opportunities for community health workers (CHWs) to contribute. This note builds on and is structured to align with the G...uidance on developing a national deployment and vaccination plan for COVID-19 vaccines. By providing CHW-relevant considerations for the VIRAT Tool, this document aims to support national governments in developing robust NDVPs for introducing COVID-19 vaccine(s) that leverage all the community-based deployment, implementation and monitoring tools at their disposal.
more
The objective of this project was to list the medical devices required to provide the essential reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health interventions defined by existing WHO guidelines and publications, in order to improve access to these devices in low- and middle-income countries, support... quality of care, and strengthen health-care system. The medical devices are allocated across the reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health continuum of care according to the level of health-care delivery.
more
The primary audience for this guidance is persons
working directly in vector-borne disease prevention
and control, including programme managers,
researchers and field workers. A brief technical
background is provided for the benefit of persons
without expertise in vector-borne diseases; readers...
working in the field may wish to skip the background
section and begin with the discussion of ethical
issues and values in Chapter 3. The guidance cannot
offer universally applicable answers to the complex
ethical issues raised, nor can it provide a checklist of
issues that are necessarily relevant in all situations.
Rather, its goal is to help readers recognize aspects
of their work that raise significant ethical challenges
and to respond to these challenges in accordance
with internationally accepted values and norms.
more
Food and nutrition security in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is subject to the relentless impact of conflict, epidemics and climate events that have persisted in the country for decades, further compounded by the global COVID-19 pandemic. Lack of infrastructure and investment in agriculture, ...health and human capital development combine to impede progress towards the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals 2 and 17. While there are several legal instruments and policies that promote food and nutrition security, poor coordination, weak national capacity and exponential population growth present serious obstacles to the achievement of zero hunger. Political instability and siloed sectoral responses to humanitarian and development needs have also affected results to date.
more
1 in 3 countries are not taking action to help students catch up on their learning post-COVID-19 school closures
UNHCR’s Public Health Strategy 2021-2025 is based on the lessons learnt, and builds on the achievements, of the Global Strategy for Public Health 2014-2018.
Progress was made on policies favouring inclusion and integration into national systems3 with 92% of 48 operations surveyed reporting refuge...es having access to national primary health care facilities under the same conditions as nationals and 96% reporting refugees having access to all relevant vaccines under the same conditions as nationals. While many refugee hosting countries have policies that allow refugees to access national health services, many face partial access, prohibitive out-of-pocket expenditures and other barriers including distance to facilities, language and provider acceptance. Furthermore, more work is needed on strengthening these systems to be able to meet the needs of both host communities and refugees.
more
Why bold action against inequalities is needed to en AIDS, stop COVID-19 and prepare for future pandemics
24 Nov. 2021
Action against gender-based violence being pushed to the outlying margins of the global COVID-19 response
A new Oxfam report shows an undeniable increase in gender-based violence (GBV) during the COVID-19 pandemic around the world to which too many governments and donors are not doi...ng enough to tackle.
The report, The Ignored Pandemic: The Dual Crisis of Gender-Based Violence and COVID-19, showed the number of calls made by survivors to domestic violence hotlines in ten countries during the first months of lockdown. The data reveals a 25 – 111 percentage surge; in Argentina (25%), Colombia (79%), Tunisia (43%), China (50%), Somalia (50%), South Africa (69%), UK (25%), Cyprus (39%), Italy (73%) and the largest increase in Malaysia where calls surged by over 111%.
more
The World Health Organization and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria are part of a group of agencies working together to accelerate progress towards the health-related SDGs through the Global Action Plan for Healthy Lives and Well-being for All. Understanding patterns of inequal...ities in these diseases is essential for taking strategic, evidence-informed action to realize our shared vision of ending the epidemics of HIV, TB and malaria.
This report presents the first comprehensive analysis of the magnitude and patterns of socioeconomic, demographic and geographic inequalities in disease burden and access to services for prevention and treatment.
The results confirm there have been improvements in service coverage and decreased disease burden at the national level over the past decade. But they also reveal an uncomfortable reality: unfair inequalities between population subgroups within countries are widespread and have remained largely unchanged over the past decade. For some disease indicators, inequalities are even worsening.
Moreover, the report points to the persistent lack of available data to fully understand inequality patterns in HIV, TB and malaria. Collecting data to improve the monitoring of inequalities in these diseases is vital to develop targeted responses for impact.
There are, encouragingly, isolated successes in reducing inequities. Change is possible when deliberate action is taken to reach disadvantaged populations.
more
This document synthesizes key elements of the World Health Organization (WHO) normative guidance on health policy and system support for community health worker (CHW) programmes and their application for HIV programmes. Building on relevant elements of HIV guidelines, tools and evidence identified b...y experts, it provides recommendations on tasks and roles that can be performed by CHWs (including for HIV), identifies the policy and system supports to optimize CHW performance, and gives examples of best practice. Its purpose is to inform the optimal design and delivery of CHW programmes targeting – either specifically or as part of a broader approach – the scale-up and sustainability of HIV services.
more
WHO is launching a “Revised edition, 2021” for the Caring for women subjected to violence: A WHO training curriculum for health-care providers today. The revised edition includes 4 new modules three of which are for health managers to assess and strengthen health facility readiness and one modul...e, which is for managers and providers to support prevention of violence against women. The earlier content published in 2019 remains unchanged. The 2021 edition is aimed at creating an enabling health systems environment for health workers to provide quality care to women subjected to violence.
more