Author: Elidee Mays

The WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean ran a workshop in Alexandria governorate, Egypt, in September 2023 to review implementation of a project, Improving monitoring capacity in humanitarian and fragile settings in the Eastern Mediterranean Region of WHO. The 3-day workshop on this capacity-building project involved WHO office staff and ministry of health focal points from 4 countries and territories. Various WHO headquarters and Regional Office personnel also attended. The occupied Palestinian territory, Somalia, Syria and Yemen were selected to take part in the project’s pilot phase, owing to the unique challenges they face in response monitoring. These include…

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between Atlantic Lifesciences, a Ghanaian company, and Vins Bioproducts, an Indian firm to produce anti-snake venom locally, to save the lives of people who are bitten by snakes, sometimes leading to deaths due to the lack of life-saving vaccines. The signing of the agreement for Vins Bioproducts to supply bulk quantities of anti-snake venom for the commencement of the fill and finish production of the serum in Ghana, will reduce the burden on government to continuously import the product into the country. This Anti-snake venom once produced by Atlantic Lifesciences will have…

Desert locust swarms have been detected in five regions and one city administration across Ethiopia, an official said Saturday. Speaking at a press conference to state media outlets, State Minister for Ethiopia Government Communication Service Selamawit Kassa said desert locust swarms have been detected in Afar, Amhara, Somali, Tigray and Oromia regions as well as in Dire Dawa city administration. The official said a total of 25,000 hectares of crops have been affected by desert locust swarms so far, which is causing a drop in crop yields and damaging farmers’ livelihoods in affected areas. A coordinated anti-pest control is being…

The organisers of the Meet Africa Fashion Festival (MAFEST) have secured strategic partnerships with the Nigerian Tourism Development Authority (NTDA) and Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation, (NIDO) Africa as preparations to host the international fashion festival in Abuja, next year, gather momentum. In a letter dated 12th October 2023, NTDA endorsed the Meet Africa Fashion Festival, acknowledging the Festival as one “Which the authority believes will not only empower the youth through job creation but will also promote the rich and diverse fashion heritage of Nigeria and as well attract Foreign Direct Investment to boost the economy”In the letter signed by…

Bayer Leverkusen winger, Nathan Tella has revealed why he is keen to play for the Super Eagles of Nigeria. Tella was born in London to Nigerian parents. The 25-year-old is also eligible to represent England but instead has chosen to wear the green and white colour of Nigeria. In a recent interview with Bayer Leverkusen’s official website, the former Burnley player revealed his ambition to play for the Super Eagles. Tella further explained his decision in an interview with OmaSports. “I feel like it’s always been a big part of my life. I was born in London and I’ve been…

Libya and Italy have agreed to unify their trade and commercial strategies within three months. The two presidents of the Italian-Libyan Chamber of Commerce, Nicola Colicchi and Anwer Abouseta, have signed a memorandum of understanding to achieve this goal, reports Italian news agency Nova. The agreement was signed last Sunday, October 8, in the headquarters of the General Chamber of Commerce of Tripoli, in the presence of a number of officials from both sides, including the Italian ambassador, Gianluca Alberini. “We have started the unification of our commercial strategies to be able to operate better both in Libya and in…

The organiser of the Miss Rwanda beauty pageant was sentenced Friday to five years in prison for rape and soliciting sexual favours — 10 months after being cleared of the charges. Dieudonne Ishimwe, a former musician popularly known as Prince Kid, had been arrested in April last year accused of sexually assaulting former contestants. In December, a judge found the 36-year-old not guilty, citing insufficient evidence, and ordered his release, but the prosecution appealed. He was convicted on Friday by a Kigali court of rape and soliciting sexual favours but acquitted on a charge of sexual harassment. Prosecutors had sought…

Djibouti is where USAID stores these items for its food assistance programs so it was vital to keep the warehouses fully stocked. But last week, a spokesperson at the time said USAID had determined, in coordination with the Ethiopian government, that a “widespread and coordinated campaign is diverting food assistance from the people of Ethiopia. Investigations are ongoing and those come on the back of Pangea-Risk report statement last month, that the strategically important Port of Djibouti has grown into a hotbed of rampant corruption, particularly at the highest echelons of the port’s administration. In our investigation conducted by well-placed…

President William Ruto said health manufacturing is a big opportunity to advance the goals of Universal Health Coverage and create jobs as well. “Kenya is the largest producer of pharmaceutical products in the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) region, supplying about 50% of the region’s market, a position we must leverage and expand.” He said Kenya must take advantage of Africa’s growing pharmaceutical manufacturing industry. “While developed country markets are stagnating, the African market is expected to grow to between USD 56 billion to USD 70 billion (Ksh 5-7 trillion) by 2030 and we must strategically position…

The Ministry of Health in Malawi with support from World Health Organization and Africa CDC, is currently training the first cohort of 63 emergency responders out of the country’s target of 200 to handle public health emergencies in Malawi and beyond. AVoHC is a reference to Africa CDC’s initiative “Africa CDC’s African Volunteer Health Corps initiative.” SURGE is a reference to WHO’s initiative, “Strengthening & Utilizing Response Groups for Emergencies.” The AVoHC-SURGE training aims to ensure that African countries are prepared to respond to health emergencies and humanitarian crises within 24 to 48 hours from the time of the incident,…