Health

Often, vulnerable communities are situated in areas of poor or marginal soils, which increases the pressure for expansion of agricultural lands.
UNDP Lao PDR/Tock Soulasen Phomm

High-level UN conference debates precious commodity: Land

9 May 2022
Global

The 15th session of the Conference of Parties (COP15) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), kicked-off on Monday, in the Ivorian "economic" capital.

A woman brings her eight-month-old granddaughter for a check-up at a health clinic in northern rural Hama in Syria.
© UNICEF/Aldroubi

New international partnerships needed to boost healthcare in Syria

6 May 2022
Global

As the protracted conflict in Syria continues to push millions deeper into poverty and increase their vulnerability to health risks, UN agencies and their partners met on Friday to spur action to revitalize the country’s embattled healthcare system. 

Living conditions of households in North-Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are poor, with seven out of ten homes living in poverty.
UNDP/Almeras-Martino

Africa: COVID has ‘pushed back’ democracy, Ukraine war further raises risks 

6 May 2022
Africa

Already reeling from COVID-19, the fighting in Ukraine has introduced significant and worrying new risks likely to heavily impact Africa, UN development experts warned on Friday.

During a global pandemic, one of the cheapest, easiest, and most important ways to prevent the spread of a virus is to wash your hands frequently with soap and water.
© UNICEF/Truong Viet Hung

Clean hands may make the difference between life and death – WHO report

6 May 2022
Global

When good hand hygiene and other infection prevention and control (IPC) measures are followed, 70 per cent of infections can be prevented in health care settings, according to a new World Health Organization (WHO) report published on Friday.

Nurses use a gurney to carry the body of a COVID victim to a hospital morgue in Kharkiv, Ukraine. (file)
© UNICEF/Evgeniy Maloletka

Nearly 15 million deaths directly or indirectly linked to COVID-19

5 May 2022
Global

Approximately 14.9 million deaths globally were directly or indirectly associated with the COVID-19 pandemic by the end 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday in new data on excess mortality attributable to the disease. 

Judith Candiru, an Assistant Nursing Officer in Yumbe district Uganda, provides COVID-19 vaccination services within the community of Midigo.
© UNICEF/Zahara Abdul

Record profits, while COVID treatment often ‘out of reach’ for the poor

4 May 2022
Global

While reported COVID-19 cases and deaths continue to decline, Omicron sub-variants are driving an increase in the Americas and Africa, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday, noting the disparity between profits being made, and treatments available in the developing world. 

A five-year-old girl eats corn for lunch in Madagascar. Her mother is a farmer and feeds her family with what she can produce, despite drought and insects.
© WFP/Sitraka Niaina Raharinaiv

Better prevention and targeting of root causes needed to combat food crises

4 May 2022
Global

The number of people facing acute food insecurity, requiring urgent life-saving food assistance and livelihood support, continues to grow at an alarming rate, according to a joint UN report released on Wednesday.
 

A fast food restaurant meal.
Unsplash/Christopher William

WHO warns of worsening obesity ‘epidemic’ in Europe

3 May 2022
Europe

Obesity rates have reached “epidemic” proportions across Europe and are still rising, the World Health Organization (WHO) Office for the region said in a report published on Tuesday.

George Laryea-Adjei, UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, inoculates a Rohingya refugee baby with the polio vaccine
© UNICEF/UN0628269/ Rashad Wajahat Lateef

First Person: A plea for the life-saving properties of vaccines

30 April 2022
Global

For the last two years, the COVID-19 pandemic has focused global attention on the impact of vaccines in fighting the virus. During World Immunization Week, the World Health Organization (WHO) has been raising awareness of the crucial role immunization has played in reducing or eliminating a host of deadly diseases.

An elderly woman has her lunch in the sun at Adibasi Sahi, India. The extreme heat is impacting hundreds of millions of people in the country.
© UNICEF/Soumi Das

Extreme heat impacting millions across India and Pakistan

29 April 2022
Asia Pacific

With extreme heat gripping large parts of India and Pakistan, the two countries are working to roll out life-saving health action plans to combat the heatwave, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Friday.