The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Biosafety and Biosecurity Initiative was launched by the Africa CDC in April 2019 with the aim of strengthening the African Union (AU) Member States’ biosafety and biosecurity systems and enabling them to comply with national and i...nternational requirements for biosafety and biosecurity including the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005), the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), and United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1540 and the multi-country Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA). The World Health Organization (WHO) Joint External Evaluation (JEE) and the Global Health Security Index report confirmed the known capacity gaps in biosafety and biosecurity among Africa Union Member (AU).
The regional consultations by Africa CDC conducted between 2019-2021 highlighted the deficiency or limited availability of standardized and regionally recognized training programs in the continent, limiting biosafety and biosecurity capacity building efforts in the region. In response, Africa CDC working with AU Member States developed a home grown, implementable and accessible professional training and certification program that is both recognized and endorsed by AU Member States. The Regional Training and Certification Program for Biosafety and Biosecurity Professionals, for African Biosafety and Biosecurity Professionals (RTCP-BBP) has four (4) areas of specialization, namely
Selection, Installation, Maintenance and Certification of Biological Safety Cabinets
Biorisk Management
Design and Maintenance of Facilities Handling High Risk Pathogens (Biocontainment Engineering)
Biological Waste management
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COVID-19 has heavily emphasized how contact tracing is crucial for managing outbreaks, and as part of the strategy for adjusting, and eventually lifting, lockdowns and other stringent public health and social measures. As the pandemic develops further, it will be a core measure to manage further wav...es of infection. In early June 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) convened an online global consultation on contact tracing in the context of COVID-19, looking at the lessons of the pandemic to date; known and emerging best practices; and the measures necessary for urgent implementation, scale-up, maintenance and enhancement of contact tracing activities.
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In many humanitarian emergencies, there is a serious lack of access to even the most basic materials needed for managing the blood in addition to a lack of appropriate sanitation facilities (including water), which are critical for addressing menstrual hygiene. Privacy in emergencies is often scarc...e, and even if toilets are available they often lack locks, functioning doors, lighting and separation between genders. These barriers are often intensified by cultural beliefs and taboos surrounding menstruation which can restrict the movements and behaviors of girls and women
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2023 is seeing intense heatwaves. According to a July 2023 briefing by the World Meteorological Association temperatures will frequently reach above 35–40°C in many places across the Mediterranean region, with temperatures in the Middle East and southeastern Türkiye reaching up to 45°C and, in ...North Africa, 44–49°C. April–May 2023 also saw temperature records broken across many parts of Asia, including Thailand, Laos and Myanmar.
The IPCC predicts that 420 million people will be exposed to extreme heat and heatwaves in the near future. Hundreds of thousands of people die from preventable heat-related causes each year, while temperature extremes and wildfires cause devastation to lives and livelihoods. According to the WMO, ‘heatwaves are amongst the deadliest natural hazards [and] heat is a rapidly growing health risk’.
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Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has emerged as a leading cause of death in the African region, surpassing fatalities from malaria, HIV, and TB. In response to this critical threat, the region has adopted the AMR Global Action Plan and the African Union Framework for Antimicrobial Resistance Control 2...020 – 2025, which is tailored to meet the specific needs of African nations through a coordinated approach. While most countries in the region have developed and prioritized National Action Plans (NAPs) to tackle AMR, the overall response remains inadequate given the magnitude of the threat, which endangers human, animal, environmental, aquatic, and plant health.
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Conflict, climate crisis and COVID-19 pose great threats to the health of women and children.
Voices from Eastern Aleppo. A Compilation of Testimonies Illustrating the Hardships of Daily Life in Eastern Aleppo under Barrel Bombings, through the Eyes of Local Residents
NEPAL CHILDREN’S EARTHQUAKE RECOVERY CONSULTATION - To better understand the consequences of the Nepal Earthquake for children, four child-centred agencies, in coordination with the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development (MoFALD) and the Central Child Welfare Board (CCWB), conducted a C...hildren’s Earthquake Recovery Consultation using Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with more than 1,800 girls and boys from the 14 most severely-affected districts. The objectives of the consultation were to hear directly from children the challenges they are facing in the aftermath of the earthquakes; to assess the impact of the crisis on their roles, responsibilities and future opportunities; and to seek their views on and recommendations for recovery.
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The CBDRR Step-by-Step Methodology aims to guide the effective implementation of new community-based as well as school-based interventions implemented by MRCS as well as other DRR actors in Myanmar identifying key steps that need to be followed under each program as well as minimum activities for ea...ch of the steps.
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This UNHCR guidance note provides comprehensive recommendations for the prevention and control of malaria in refugee settings worldwide. Aligned with the WHO Global Technical Strategy for Malaria, it outlines strategies to ensure access to effective prevention, diagnosis and treatment, implement sus...tainable transmission reduction measures and strengthen surveillance systems. The document is intended as a practical resource for humanitarian actors, public health officials and partners involved in planning and implementing malaria programmes in refugee operations, with the aim of reducing malaria-related morbidity and mortality among vulnerable populations.
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The latest update (28 January 2021) includes the following addition and revision:
biosafety aspects for working with antigen-detecting rapid diagnostic test;
handling new variants of SARS-CoV-2 in the laboratory;
updated assay decontamination before disposal;
personal protectiv...e equipment (PPE) for specimen collection;
addressing chemical hazards and their safe disposal; and
the fourth edition of the WHO Laboratory Biosafety Manual (LBM4) is now available and the terminology in this guidance was aligned with the LBM4.
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Based on Human Rights Watch (HRW)'s reporting on the human rights dimensions of the COVID-19 pandemic (see Related Summary, and the video, below), this document presents 40 questions to provoke thinking about a rights-respecting response to the crisis. The questions address the needs - including aro...und issues of information and communication - of groups most at risk, such as people living in poverty, ethnic and religious minorities, women, people with disabilities, older people, migrants, refugees, children, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. The resource also identifies a variety of responses to the crisis, some of which are positive and others problematic - with many links to related stories and resources online.
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This document was conducted as a desk study and provides useful information and practical examples of responses to HIV and AIDS in the fields of agriculture, rural development, self-help and social protection. It aims to invite Misereor partners and others working in these fields to reflect on their... current approaches and to encourage them to respond, in their core business, to the challenges presented by HIV and AIDS.
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The WHO Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) Clinical management: living guidance contains the Organization’s most up-to-date recommendations for the clinical management of people with EVD. Providing guidance that is comprehensive and holistic for the optimal care of patients with EVD throughout their il...lness is important.
The living guidance is available in both pdf format (via the ‘Download’ button) and via an online platform in both French and English, and is updated regularly as new evidence emerges.
This first version of the Clinical management for EVD living guidance contains four new recommendations regarding use of therapeutics for EVD, this includes two strong recommendations for the use of monoclonal antibody therapies. This new living guideline is written to accompany the optimized supportive care (oSoC) for EVD standard operating procedures (5, 6). The living guideline aims to summarize high quality evidence for EVD therapeutics and make recommendations for their use.
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This is the first guidance note in a four-part series of notes produced by InterAction to support management,
program and M&E staff in international NGOs to plan, design, manage, conduct and use impact evaluations. This first guidance note, Introduction to Impact Evaluation, provides an overview of... impact evaluation, explaining how impact evaluation differs from – and complements – other types of evaluation, why impact evaluation should be
done, when and by whom. It describes different methods, approaches and designs that can be used for the different aspects of impact evaluation. The guidance note is also available in French, Arabic and Spanish on https://www.interaction.org/impact-evaluation-notes.
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Health Statistics in the Western Pacific Region 2023: Monitoring health for the SDGs is the third biennial report providing an overview of the progress of the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region towards the health-related Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets. Thi...s edition also serves as a baseline assessment for the implementation of the global WHO Fourteenth General Programme of Work 2025–2028 (GPW14) within the Western Pacific Region and the for the Regional Vision “Weaving Health for Families, Communities, and Societies of the Western Pacific Region: Working Together to Improve Health, Well-Being and Save Lives”.
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Antimicrobial resistance is a global crisis that threatens a century of progress in health and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. There is no time to wait. Unless the world acts urgently, antimicrobial resistance will have disastrous impact within a generation.
This paper presents lessons learned from previous flood responses in developing countries, based on a structured review of the literature. It is intended for people working in relief and recovery operations who have to decide if, when and how to intervene after a flood.
This document has been developed for the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean to establish a regional plan of action to support the countries of the Region to rapidly accelerate the scaling up of their capacities for the prevention and early detection of, and ... rapid response to, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), as required under the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005). The regional plan is aligned with the WHO global 2019 novel coronavirus strategic preparedness and response plan, but tailored to the regional context.
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This page describes ten immediate water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) actions that low-resource healthcare facilities can undertake with limited budget in the near-term (0-3 months) to prepare for and address COVID-19. On the second page, WHO and UNICEF have provided input on how to best adapt thei...r Eight Practical Steps in the midst of COVID-19. Finally, we have compiled resources for action. While some activities may be temporary stopgaps, the goal is to provide incremental improvements that can be sustained and built upon after the outbreak subsides. In particular, the proper management of WASH will be critical to protect healthcare workers and prevent infections.
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