The threat posed by antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to public health as well as global health security has been reiterated in umerous World Health Assembly (WHA) resolutions. AMR is also prioritized under the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), and India is one of the contributing countries. The Mi...nistry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) identified AMR as one of the top 10 priorities for the ministry’s collaborative work with WHO. The National Health Policy 2017 identifies antimicrobial resistance as a problem and calls for effective action to address it. An international conference on AMR – “Combating Antimicrobial Resistance: A
Public Health Challenge and Priority”, was jointly organized by the Government of India and World Health Organization (WHO) in February 2016, which was attended by more than 350 participants. The Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, and the Hon’ble Union Minister for Health, Shri J.P. Nadda have reiterated government’s commitment to tackle AMR.
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On Global Handwashing Day, WHO and UNICEF have released the first-ever global Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Community Settings to support governments and practitioners in promoting effective hand hygiene outside health care – across households, public spaces and institutions. Framing hand hygiene ...as a public good and a government responsibility, the Guidelines translate evidence into ready-to-adopt actions that enable sustainable access to effective hygiene services. This will reduce diarrhoeal disease, acute respiratory infections and other preventable illnesses, strengthening routine public health where people live, work, visit and study, and emergency preparedness, including outbreaks like cholera.
Despite clear benefits, 1.7 billion people still lacked basic hand hygiene services at home in 2024, including 611 million with no facility at all. Meeting the 2030 target will require accelerated progress – about a doubling in the global rate, and much faster in specific settings (up to 11-fold in least-developed countries and 8-fold in fragile contexts). Hand hygiene remains one of the most cost-effective health investments, reducing diarrhoea by 30% and acute respiratory infections by 17%, with large, measurable gains for population health.
“Clean hands save lives, but results at scale require policy, financing and accountability,” said Dr Ruediger Krech, Director a.i, Department of Environment, Climate Change, One Health & Migration at the World Health Organization. “These Guidelines help countries move beyond fragmented projects to government-led systems that make soap, water, and conditions conducive to everyday hand hygiene the norm.”
“Children and young people pay the highest price when basic hygiene is out of reach,” said Cecilia Scharp, Director, Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Team, Programme Group, UNICEF. “These Guidelines provide practical steps to ensure facilities are accessible when they need to be – in homes, schools, markets, and transport hubs – so every child can learn, play and thrive with dignity.”
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Paraguay muestra avances en el compromiso asumido, de avanzar hacia la Salud Uni¬versal. La experiencia ha demostrado que el proceso puede acelerarse cuando existe un fuerte involucramiento social. En este marco se realizó un llamado a los líderes del MSPYBS, la sociedad civil y público en gener...al para lograr un sólido compromiso con las acciones que nos permitan avan¬zar hacia la salud para todos y todas en ámbitos específicos. El propósito fue el de abrir un espacio de diálogo que genere propuestas concretas para sentar las bases de un sistema de Salud Universal. En este marco se realizó un llamado a los líderes del MSPYBS, la sociedad civil y público en general para lograr un sólido compromiso con las acciones que nos permitan avan¬zar hacia la salud para todos y todas en ámbitos específicos. El propósito fue el de abrir un espacio de diálogo que genere propuestas concretas para sentar las bases de un sistema de Salud Universal.
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WHO/HTM/TB/2007.384a
“TB is too often a death sentence for people with AIDS.
It does not have to be this way.”
-Nelson Mandela, International conference on HIV /AIDS, Bangkok, Thailand, July 2004
The far-reaching impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic underscore the critical need for evidence-informed, transparent and inclusive decision-making. Policy-makers have grappled with complex choices amidst uncertainty. They have constantly reassessed response measures while navigating their economic impl...ications and unintended consequences on societal well-being. Effective communication of the basis for these decisions has also posed a challenge, requiring transparency and public trust.
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Practical Guidance for collaborative interventions
Global HIV Strategic Information Working Group
For Populations At Risk For HIV
Practical Guideline for collaborative interventions
The global tripartite self-assessment survey of country progress in addressing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a component of a broader approach for monitoring and evaluation of the global action plan on AMR. This report analyses the results of the second tripartite self-assessment survey. It has ...been developed and run by the three Tripartite organizations (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and World Health Organization (WHO)) and reflects progress in the human, animal (terrestrial and aquatic), plant, food safety and environmental sectors. 154 countries out of 194 WHO Member States responded to this round of the self-assessment survey – a response rate of 79.4%.
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During fresh fruit and vegetables (FFV) production, water is used for a variety of purposes. Even the water was conventionally treated and disinfected, it may still potentially contain human pathogens, albeit at low concentrations. A risk assessment, appropriate to the national or local production c...ontext, should be conducted to assess the potential risks associated with a specific water source or supply in order to devise the appropriate risk mitigation strategies.
Since the 48th session of Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH) noted the importance of water safety and quality in food production and processing, FAO and WHO has undertaken the work on this subject. This report describes the output of the third in a series of meetings, which examined appropriate and fit-for-purpose microbiological criteria for water used with fresh fruit and vegetables. The advice herein will support decision making when applying the concept of fit-for-purpose water for use in the pre- and post-harvest production of fresh fruit and vegetables.
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Global HIV Strategic Information Working Group
Joining efforts to control two trelated global epidemics.
This paper has been prepared to inform discussion at the conference “Beating the DRUM - Domestic Resource Use and Mobilization for accelerating progress towards SDG3,”. Many countries face critical shortfalls in domestic resource use and mobilization (DRUM) for health, threatening to push health... goals out of reach. DRUM failures weaken human capital formation, a vital input to economic growth. Countries need more and better health spending. The first step is to apply already-proven DRUM solutions, adapting them to new contexts. However, in many countries, even the best achievable DRUM performance will not be enough. New solutions are needed, including private-sector engagement and a next generation of DAH. The “Beating the DRUM” conference offers a platform for countries and partners to dialogue and build joint strategy. While each country’s situation is unique, shared lines of action are emerging.
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Policy Brief
Accessed: 20.11.2019