Share excess COVID-19 vaccines now, UNICEF chief says ahead of G7 summit

Henrietta Fore, the agency’s Executive Director, issued the statement from New York as G7 leaders gear up for their summit next month in the United Kingdom, and as vaccine producer India continues to confront the rapid surge.

Heed the warning

UNICEF is a partner in COVAX, the global vaccine equity mechanism, which is set to deliver its 65 millionth dose this week.  However, Ms Fore said “it should have been at least its 170 millionth.” 

The shortfall will be closer to 190 million doses by the time the G7 meet, she added, and as a deadly second wave of COVID-19 will likely continue to sweep across India and many of its neighbours.

“We have issued repeated warnings of the risks of letting down our guard and leaving low- and middle-income countries without equitable access to vaccines, diagnostics and therapeutics. We are concerned that the deadly spike in India is a precursor to what will happen if those warnings remain unheeded,” she said.

India crisis ‘not unique’

Although tragic, Ms Fore said the situation in India “is not unique”.  Countries such as Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Argentina and Brazil have seen an explosion in cases, and health systems are struggling.  She also pointed to the threat of the emergence of more deadly or contagious variants if the virus continues to spread unchecked.  

While COVAX represents a pathway out of the pandemic, it is undersupplied, in part due to the crisis in India. The country is a leader in vaccine production, but the situation at home has led to a severe reduction in supplies for the solidarity scheme.

“Soaring domestic demand has meant that 140 million doses intended for distribution to low- and middle-income countries through the end of May cannot be accessed by COVAX.  Another 50 million doses are likely to be missed in June,” she said.

“This, added to vaccine nationalism, limited production capacity and lack of funding, is why the roll-out of COVID vaccines is so behind schedule.”

Share your doses

Ms Fore said G7 leaders will be meeting in June “with a potential emergency stop-gap measure readily available.”

New data analysis indicates that the bloc, together with European Union countries, could donate around 153 million vaccine doses if they shared just 20 per cent of their available supply over June, July and August. Governments would still be able to vaccinate their populations.

“While some G7 members have greater supplies than others, and some have further advanced domestic rollouts, an immediate collective commitment to pool excess supplies and share the burden of responsibility could buttress vulnerable countries against becoming the next global hotspot,” Ms Fore said.

The UNICEF chief stated that “the global vaccination race” will only be won when countries fully fund and supply COVAX, while also supporting vaccine production through Intellectual Property licensing and technology transfers.

“These measures are critical, but they won’t change anything overnight,” she said. “Sharing immediately available excess doses is a minimum, essential and emergency stop-gap measure, and it is needed right now.”
 

COVID-19: Wealthy nations urged to delay youth vaccines, donate to solidarity scheme

Speaking during WHO’s bi-weekly media briefing, agency chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reiterated his warning against “vaccine nationalism”, as  low-income nations currently receive a paltry 0.3 per cent of supply. 

‘Trickle down’ strategy 

“In a handful of rich countries, which bought up the majority of the vaccine supply, lower risk groups are now being vaccinated”, he said.

“I understand why some countries want to vaccinate their children and adolescents, but right now I urge them to reconsider and to instead donate vaccines to COVAX.”   

Tedros reported that vaccine supply in low and lower-middle income countries has not been sufficient to even immunize health and care workers.

“Trickle down vaccination is not an effective strategy for fighting a deadly respiratory virus”, he said.

This year could be deadlier

As of Friday, there were more than 160.8 million cases of COVID-19 globally.

The disease “has already cost more than 3.3 million lives and we’re on track for the second year of this pandemic to be far more deadly than the first”, Tedros told journalists.

India remains “hugely concerning”, he said, with several states continuing to see a worrying number of cases, hospitalizations and deaths. Nepal, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Egypt are also among countries that are dealing with spikes in cases and hospitalizations. 

“Some countries in the Americas still have high numbers of cases and as a region, the Americas accounted for 40% of all COVID-19 deaths last week. There are also spikes in some countries in Africa.” 

Welcome developments

Tedros stressed that the only way out of the pandemic is through a combination of public health measures and vaccination, not one or the other.

While vaccine supply remains a key challenge, he pointed to new developments this week to address surrounding issues.

Several countries have announced they will share vaccines with COVAX. Other measures include new deals on tech transfers to scale-up vaccine production, and calls by world leaders to lift trade barriers. 

Unmasking the pandemic 

With some authorities, including in the United States, lifting policies on wearing masks in public, WHO continues to recommend their use as part of a comprehensive strategy for controlling coronavirus spread.

Dr. Maria van Kerkhove, WHO Technical Lead on COVID-19, explained that mask mandates depend on key factors, principally the intensity of virus transmission in any given area.

“It’s about how much virus is circulating around in a country.  It’s about the amount of vaccines and vaccinations that are rolling out.  It’s about variants of interest, the variants of concern, that are circulating,” she said, responding to a journalist’s question on the updated guidance in the US, issued on Thursday.

“We have to keep all of this in mind when thinking about how to adjust the policies associated with the use of masks.”

Keep masks in the mix 

Dr. Michael Ryan, WHO Executive Director, echoed her statement, adding that “even in situations where you have high vaccine coverage, if you have got a lot of transmission then you wouldn’t take your mask off.” 

While high vaccination coverage should also mean low community transmission of the virus, he said “we are at a point where many countries are facing a situation where the transmission hasn’t completely ended, and people aren’t completely vaccinated.”  

Dr. Ryan said as long as authorities sustain public health measures as they work to increase vaccination, “countries will be in a much stronger position when they do get to high vaccine coverage levels to start saying to people ‘You don’t have to wear a mask anymore.’”

First Person: ‘God save us from famine’

“At the beginning of the war, my children and I were forced to flee our home, and move in with relatives in another part of Aden. The conflict affected all of us: my community, my family, and me. It took many people I was close to. It took away our youth and made our children grow up too soon. 

I worked as a nurse from 2003 to 2011, and then I trained in nutrition, specialising in breastfeeding. Since then I have been able to return home to Al Tawahi, to work in the nutrition clinic, and for about eight years I have been working in the malnutrition unit.

Life is getting harder

Malnutrition in Yemen has increased dramatically since the beginning of the war. Food prices are increasing with each new day, diseases are everywhere, life is becoming harder every day.

In the current situation the cost of food is very high, and there are people who can’t buy cheese or eggs for their children, or can’t find anything to eat at all. 

Those of us who are lucky enough to have salaried work can’t cope with the situation: I can’t imagine what it’s like for those who don’t get a monthly pay cheque.

We pray to God to save us from famine. All those who face poverty and hunger are exhausted. When I see a child, who is suffering from malnutrition, I find them very weak, in the beginning. When a child has malnutrition, they become less active and lethargic, and they lag behind others in their education level. 

If you could see them, your heart would break. When I look at them, I imagine my son in this position. Imagine having a seven-month-old child weighing just three kilograms. When I try to weigh them, I find it difficult to carry them. I ask the mothers how they are managing, and they tell me that they rely on God. 

Doing something good for humanity

When a mother brings in a child suffering from malnutrition, I provide nutrition treatment, and advise her to bring them back the following week. When she returns, and I see the child has gained weight, and is looking healthier with filled out cheeks, I feel relieved.

I love working in the clinic. My heart aches when I see children crying from pain or hunger, but I can make a positive difference, helping the mothers, and put a smile on the face of the children. 

On Tuesday, UN chief António Guterres called Ms. El-Sayeed Ali, in a bid to highlight the dire situation in Yemen with the looming famine and to call for increased international support especially with the lack of funding to humanitarian efforts in Yemen.

Top COVID probe urges bold overhaul of pandemic prevention measures 

“Our message is simple and clear: the current system failed to protect us from the COVID-19 pandemic”, said former Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, co-chair of the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response. “If we do not act to change it now, it will not protect us from the next pandemic threat, which could happen at any time.” 

Launched by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the independent panel issued its findings and recommendations after an eight-month review of lessons learned from the past year. 

Insufficient protection 

“The tools are available to put an end to the severe illnesses, deaths, and socio-economic damage caused by COVID-19”, said panel co-chair Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, insisting that leaders “have no choice but to act” to stop such a catastrophe happening again.   

 “The current system – at both national and international levels – was not adequate to protect people from COVID-19. The time it took from the reporting of a cluster of cases of pneumonia of unknown origin in mid-late December 2019 to a Public Health Emergency of International Concern being declared, was too long,” the panel said in a statement on its report, COVID-19: Make it the Last Pandemic.  

‘Lost month’ 

The panel – whose report contains “the authoritative chronology of what happened” – also insisted that February 2020 was “a lost month”. 

This was because “many more countries” could have done more to contain the spread of the new coronavirus after the WHO declared a public health emergency of international concern on 30 January, after the initial outbreak in Wuhan, China. 

“The shelves of storage rooms in the UN and national capitals are full of reports and reviews of previous health crises. Had their warnings been heeded, we would have avoided the catastrophe we are in today. This time must be different,” said Johnson Sirleaf. 

Unfit for prevention 

Quicker action “would have helped to prevent the global health, social, and economic catastrophe that continues its grip”, the panel noted, adding that “the system as it stands now is clearly unfit to prevent another novel and highly infectious pathogen, which could emerge at any time, from developing into a pandemic”. 

Among its recommendations – and after highlighting how the coronavirus crisis continues to devastate communities – the panel urged Heads of State to take the lead in supporting proven public health measures to curb the pandemic and implement reforms “to prevent a future outbreak” from spreading globally. 

One billion dose call 

The panel also advised high-income countries with adequate vaccine supply to commit to provide “at least one billion” doses to the 92 low and middle-income countries in the UN-led equitable vaccine scheme, COVAX, by September 2021. 

Major vaccine-producing countries and manufacturers should agree to share intellectual property rights on their jabs, it said, guided by the UN health agency and the World Trade Organization (WTO). 

“If actions on this don’t occur within three months, a waiver of intellectual property rights under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights should come into force immediately”, the panel insisted. 

Turning to the world’s wealthiest countries, known as the G7, the panel of leading experts recommended that they should “immediately” stump up 60 per cent of the $19 billion required for the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator for vaccines, diagnostics, therapeutics, and strengthening of health systems. 

Summit call 

Heads of Government should commit to these reforms at a global summit, the panel continued, by adopting a political declaration under the auspices of the UN General Assembly. 

Describing its recommendations as potentially “transformative”, the panel highlighted that those least capable of withstanding the pandemic’s myriad shocks had been the worst affected.  

“Up to 125 million more people are estimated to have been pushed into extreme poverty, while 72 million more primary school-age children are now at risk of being unable to read or understand a simple text because of school closures,” the experts maintained.  

Women have also borne a disproportionate burden, they continued, with gender-based violence at record levels and child marriages on the increase.  

Underscoring the economic shock of the past pandemic year, the experts also noted that the world “lost $7 trillion” in economic output – more than the 2019 GDP of the entire African continent ($6.7 trillion)”. 

Latest toll 

According to WHO there have been more than 159 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally, including over 3.3 million deaths since the pandemic began. In its weekly epidemiological update, the UN health agency noted that some 1.2 billion vaccine doses have been administered. 

The number of new COVID-19 cases and deaths globally has slightly decreased in the past week, with over 5.5 million cases and over 90,000 deaths.  

But “case and death incidences…remain at the highest levels since the beginning of the pandemic”, the WHO bulletin cautioned. New weekly cases decreased in Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean, while the South-East Asia Region continued its upward trajectory, reporting a further six per cent increase on the previous seven-day period.

What can the UN do to help Asia through its life-threatening COVID-19 surge?

‘We gave the virus a chance’

Dr. Roderico H. Ofrin, WHO representative to Asia: it is critical to remember that, by very early February for this year, the economy and social tasks reopened. We additionally saw that individuals were not behaving in a fashion that was proper to slowing COVID-19, and I also think that’s why we are where we’re. There are many reasons, but fundamentally, we offered the herpes virus to be able to keep transmitting.

Dr. Yasmin Ali Haque, UNICEF agent to Asia: In 2020 we had been working closely because of the Indian national on distributing health texting and stopping attacks. Life began getting to regular in 2010, and also this occurs when the second revolution struck.

A formidable trend

Dr. Ofrin: what sort of virus features spread is comparable to just what we’ve noticed in European countries or perhaps the US, nevertheless scale is extremely various. The density of this population might be additionally a factor, and we’ve seen that the spikes tend to be intense in metropolitan areas. Inside days as soon as the cases were increasing, the device managed to soak up patients, and additional bedrooms had been also becoming offered this past year. Therefore, it’s a scale problem: the scale for the rise additionally the scale of this response.

This virus is adjusting therefore quickly, that no model has-been in a position to anticipate how it will probably distribute. We must be ahead of the online game: it’s a cycle of preparedness, readiness, reaction and recovery. You can’t stop. 

However, we do know how to deal with it: consistent evaluation, contact tracing, energetic instance finding, early treatment, and delay premature ejaculation pills. Folks have to observe COVID-appropriate behaviours, just like the 3W’s – Wear a mask, Wash both hands, Watch your length – and vaccinate. This is actually the full arsenal of ammunition to fight herpes. it is currently a matter of employing these resources consistently, as well as scale. 

Listen below to our full sound interview with Dr. Ofrin:

All hands on deck

Dr. Ali Haque: Right now, we’re targeting getting important oxygen gear. We’re additionally working on procuring evaluating devices, and getting COVID vaccines sent to individuals. We now have countless experience vaccinating kiddies, and we’re adapting that experience to anticipate what type of bottlenecks we’re more likely to face, and problems of vaccine hesitancy or vaccine eagerness. We’ve administered close to 160 million amounts in about 110 times that will be probably the fastest in the world.

The task, obviously may be the numbers, how big Asia, the distances plus the landscapes that sometimes should be covered. It isn’t a straightforward task, but in my opinion that, if it is possible everywhere, it will be possible here.

Dr. Ofrin: Asia is one of the nations that does mass immunisation extremely, well. In the event that you examine how things were only available in the usa, they certainly were perhaps not used to mass vaccination promotions. Asia features a very good tradition and history of vaccinations, and that’s why the launch on January 16 went really. But to achieve herd resistance, we must get everybody else vaccinated but men and women should also respond in manners which can be proper.

We’ve been tapping our system of 2600 community health experts in Asia, and our experts in the industry happen promoting our response: it really is all hands on deck for us. A number of our concern places will continue to encircle the maintenance of important wellness services. Needless to say, disease avoidance and control is very important, nevertheless first priority is completing vital gaps.

Pay attention below to your full interview with Dr. Ali Haque:

Consequences lasts years

Dr. Ali Haque: The consequences with this pandemic is likely to be around for years. We are already witnessing the secondary effects, specially on kids additionally the poorest and most marginalised groups. 

When you look at the best-case scenario, we estimate that about 50 % of kids gain access to remote learning. Which means that around 150 million children of school-going age do not have accessibility. Our company is currently reading of stories of an increase in youngster labour, the first wedding of women particularly plus child trafficking.

We must address the psychosocial traumatization the kids are facing now, and be ready for the long term impacts. With so many people dying, kiddies are increasingly being remaining without parental care or without caregivers, so there has to be an investment in cultivating and alternative care plans of these kiddies. 

But i believe the way in which we have seen communities come together, as well as the extent that people is donating, has been unprecedented. This can be likely to be essential if we are to see the financial investment in crucial services that enable kiddies to stay healthier, to thrive, and to recover from the injury produced by this pandemic.
 

India’s new COVID-19 wave is spreading like ‘wildfire’, warns UN Children’s Fund

In the last 24 hours, India registered 3,915 coronavirus deaths and 414,188 cases “which is the highest daily case count recorded by any country in the history of COVID-19 pandemic”, said Yasmin Ali Haque, UNICEF Representative in India.

“UNICEF is of course very concerned about this deadly daily surge in new cases”, she added. “This wave is almost four times the size of the first wave and the virus is spreading much faster. On average, there were more than four new cases every second and more than two deaths every minute in the last 24 hours.”

Overwhelmed health centres

The UN official noted that health facilities have been overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients, amid reports that pregnant women have struggled to find the support they need to give birth.

“With 27 million births and 30 million pregnancies every year, life-saving services to help women give birth are critical in India” Ms. Ali Haque said. “What is happening in India should raise alarm bells for all of us. The pandemic is far from over. COVID-19 cases are rising at an alarming rate across South Asia, especially in Nepal, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.”

Very low levels of vaccination in most South Asian countries – less than 10 per cent in India, Sri Lanka and Nepal – were also adding to concerns of the virus spiralling even further, the UNICEF representative noted. 

Second wave impact

UNICEF is also concerned that the COVID-19 surge has also led to “dire consequences” for a greater number of children than during the first wave of infections, with access to essential health, social, protection and education services constrained.

“Children are facing mental health issues and are at greater risk of violence, as lockdowns shut them off from their vital support networks”, Ms. Ali Haque said.

Although there is no indication that the proportion of children getting infected is any different to the first wave, “the numbers are far greater”, she insisted. “We’re seeing the virus entering a household; it just takes one member of the household to be affected and it seems to spread like wildfire throughout the family.”

Illegal adoptions

This has been accompanied by a likely spike in illegal adoption pleas on internet platforms by families desperate to find homes for orphaned relatives, prompting fears of child exploitation, the UN official said.

Authorities were “beginning to pick up on numbers” of vulnerable children, the UNICEF official continued, in a call to promote family tracing and speedier help for destitute families.

“When we see that children are being orphaned and we do see that there is a lot of trafficking of children which is reported, children go missing, those systems are beginning to pick up on numbers”, she said.

There is a greater alertness around any family seeing that children (that) have been affected get reported…While there isn’t enough data yet, we can see that illegal adoption pleas have surfaced on social media, making these orphans vulnerable to trafficking and abuse.”

Early-warning ‘pandemic hub’ plan unveiled by WHO’s Tedros and Germany’s Merkel

Supported by the German Government, the centre will specialize in gathering epidemic intelligence, data, surveillance and analytics innovation.

It will open later this year, according to Chancellor Angela Merkel, who explained how she had first discussed the idea last autumn, with World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Joint action

“The world has learned that we can only meet a global challenge such as the current COVID-19 pandemic through joint action,” said Chancellor Merkel, in a pre-recorded video message, broadcast during a press conference at the WHO in Geneva.

“Meanwhile, we have also realised that the WHO is the central global health institution in this effort. An essential basis for the fight against future pandemics is data. Data that, when bundled and processed with the correct analytical tools, yields insights that we could never discover on our own, or at least not so quickly.”

The WHO is the central global health institution in this effort Chancellor Angela Merkel

Echoing the need for greater cooperation and information-sharing between countries to complement existing international health regulations, Tedros underscored the likely recurrence of new global health threats:

“The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed gaps in the global systems for pandemic and epidemic intelligence. And it’s a fact of nature that there will more viruses that will emerge with the potential of sparking epidemics or pandemics. Viruses move fast, but data can move even faster.”

Stay ahead of the virus

Although “viruses move fast… data can move even faster”, the WHO chief insisted, adding that “with the right information, countries and communities can stay one step ahead of an emerging risk and save lives. Modern technologies give us unprecedented tools for collecting, analysing and disseminating data in real time around the world. That’s what the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence aims to do.”

A super-computer will help the new centre to “predict, prevent, detect prepare for and respond to pandemic and epidemic risks worldwide”, according to WHO.

Health Emergencies Programme Executive Director, Dr. Michael Ryan. highlighted the importance of taking immediate action and sharing information when tackling future public health threats:

“There are many problems to solve here and issues around transparency and accountability cannot necessarily be solved by new technologies”, he said, noting that “being able to generate early insights as to disease risk and vulnerability, and be able to take immediate action, has been a very important factor in being able to mitigate disease quickly.”

Epidemic ‘surveillance system’

Dr Ryan highlighted how the Berlin centre would help to identify “signals that may occur before epidemics happen”, as “there are risks that emerge at the animal-human interface, there is data on everything from climate to mobility, to as I said animal-related data that can give us pre-signals, signals before epidemics start of high risks and of high vulnerabilities.

“The hub will allow us to develop tools for that sort of predicted analytics, it will also give us tools for managing during epidemics, in terms of managing societal response.”

German Federal Minister of Health Jens Spahn, noted that the WHO Hub would act as a “global early warning surveillance system”.

It will support the work of public health experts and policymakers in all countries, to help them respond rapidly to future public health emergencies, he added.

“Globally we all need to work together to be better prepared for the next pandemic and the second is that we must strengthen WHO’s leading and coordinating role, particularly in pandemic preparedness.”

South Asia: ‘Real possibility’ health systems will be strained to a breaking point, UNICEF warns

In a statement on Tuesday, George Laryea-Adjei, UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, called for “urgent action and steadfast leadership” to stop the catastrophe.

“Governments must do everything within their power to stop the devastation, and partners that are able to send assistance must do so immediately. The international community must step up without delay. This is not just a moral imperative”, he said.

Mr. Laryea-Adjei also reiterated the importance of individual responsibility.

“Every decision we make has the potential to alter the course of this surge – and to either safeguard or endanger the lives of those around us. We may be exhausted, but the virus is not”, he stressed.

He also reminded everyone to ensure they wear masks, wash hands thoroughly with soap, keep physical distances, and to get vaccinated if they have the opportunity to do so.

Sharp rises across the region

Countries across the region are witnessing rises in infections, with India accounting for over 90 per cent of both cases and deaths in the region, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). India accounts, as well as 46 per cent of global cases and 25 per cent of global deaths reported in the past week, WHO added.

Neighboring countries Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka also reported increasing caseloads.

The situation is particularly alarming in Nepal, where cases recorded a 137 per cent rise this week, reaching the highest levels since the pandemic started last year, severely straining its fragile health system and resulting in shortage of hospital beds, intensive care units and critical medical supplies, including personal protective equipment (PPE) and oxygen concentrators.

The Nepalese Government last week announced a lockdown in many locations across the country, including in Kathmandu valley, and suspended domestic flights to stymie the spread of coronavirus.

Pakistan is also experiencing a major surge in COVID-19 and the number of cases increased rapidly in recent weeks, with daily cases reaching a seven-day average of 5,500 cases per day, up from an average of 1,100 cases per day in February.

According to a humanitarian bulletin from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), healthcare system has been impacted in the provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with hospitals reporting shortages of available beds, oxygen, and other essential supplies.

Very low levels of vaccinations

The UNICEF official also warned that the very low levels of vaccination in the region could magnify the likelihood of the virus spiraling “even further out of control”.

According to UNICEF, in almost all countries in the region, with the exception of Maldives and Bhutan, fewer than 1 in 10 people have been vaccinated.

“Now more than ever, we must ensure vaccines equitably reach all populations. Manufacturing must be ramped up, technology transferred, and doses equitably shared. None of us are safe until all of us are safe”, said Mr. Laryea-Adjei. 

UN report sounds alarm on acute global shortage of midwives

The 2021 State of the World’s Midwifery report, launched on Wednesday by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), the UN World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Confederation of Midwives, said that fully resourcing midwife-delivered care by 2035 would avert roughly two-thirds of maternal, newborn deaths and stillbirths, saving 4.3 million lives per year.

Natalia Kanem, Executive Director of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), highlighted the “enormous impact” midwives have on women and their families.

“A capable, well-trained midwife can have an enormous impact on childbearing women and their families – an impact often passed on from one generation to the next.”

“At UNFPA, we have spent more than a decade strengthening education, enhancing working conditions and supporting leadership roles for the midwifery profession. We have seen that these efforts work”, she added.

The report called on governments to provide an enabling work environment for midwives, free from gender-related stigma, violence and discrimination. It also urged greater investment in the education and training of midwives and midwife-led service delivery, and midwifery leadership and governance.

Appointing senior midwives as leaders at country level would provide a significant lever for building capacity, it noted.

Providing health services, protecting women’s rights

Midwives do not just attend births, they also provide antenatal and postnatal care and a range of sexual and reproductive health services, including family planning, detecting and treating sexually transmitted infections, and sexual and reproductive health services for adolescents, all while ensuring respectful care and upholding women’s rights.

As numbers of midwives increase and they are able to provide care in an enabling environment, women’s and newborns’ health improves as a whole, benefitting all of society.

The report’s 2021 edition – the third in the series – noted, however, that despite previous warnings and presenting a roadmap to remedy the deficit, progress has been very slow. According to latest analysis, at the current rate, the situation would improve “only slightly” by 2030.

Learn lessons from the pandemic

Against this background, the report called on Governments and stakeholders to “build back better and fairer” from the pandemic, forging stronger primary health-care systems as a pathway to universal health coverage and fostering a more equitable world for all.

“We must learn the lessons the pandemic is teaching us, by implementing policies and making investments that deliver better support and protection for midwives and other health workers”, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said.

“This report provides the data and evidence to support WHO’s longstanding call to strengthen the midwifery workforce, which will deliver a triple dividend in contributing to better health, gender equality and inclusive economic growth”, he added.

Follow the data, invest in midwives

The launch of the report coincided with the International Day of the Midwife, observed annually on 5 May. The Day recognizes the crucial role these essential healthcare professionals have in preventing maternal and newborn deaths and empowering women to make the best choices for themselves and their babies.

This year’s theme is Follow the Data, Invest in Midwives.

Franka Cadée, President of the International Confederation of Midwives, appealed to governments and policy makers to act on the report’s recommendations.

“As autonomous, primary care providers, midwives are continually overlooked and ignored. It’s time for governments to acknowledge the evidence surrounding the life-promoting, life-saving impact of midwife-led care, and take action on the State of the World’s Midwifery report’s recommendations.” 

Joy in South Sudan, as schools reopen after 14-month COVID lockdown

Describing the “joy” felt by children and aid workers as classrooms reopened on Monday after more than 14 months of COVID-19 restrictions, Mads Oyen, UNICEF’s chief of field operations, explained that going back to school was about more than just learning.

“Especially in a country like South Sudan, where we’re also faced with humanitarian emergencies in many parts of the country”, he explained. “Schools are places for children to be safe and to be protected and also to access basic services, school feeding and so on.”

Despite the welcome development, the UNICEF official noted that many children had not been able to return to class, their future development held up by a chronic humanitarian emergency, fuelled by ongoing violence and climate shocks.

Malaria one threat among many

The warning comes ahead of the upcoming rainy season, which brings with it a higher risk of cholera, malaria and respiratory infections.

There has already been a near-doubling of outpatient admissions in the last weeks, likely from malaria infections or reinfections, Mr Oyens said.

“(It’s) about controlling malaria, it’s about controlling any measles outbreaks, it’s about providing clean water to kids”, he explained, before highlighting the “multiple risks” that children face.

These include “violence, exploitation and abuse (and) recruitment by armed groups, still going on, psychosocial distress and family separation”.

Fewer that one in 10 children has access to child protection services, the veteran UNICEF worker said, noting that between January and March this year, the agency scaled up treatment to more than 50,000 children who were suffering from severe acute malnutrition.

The recovery rate was more than 95 per cent “in some of the most difficult-to-operate areas of the world”, he added.

Health threat to 800,000

In a related development, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) warned on Tuesday that life-saving healthcare for more than 800,000 South Sudanese, may have to be cut if funding is not found urgently.

“Internally displaced persons, returnees and conflict-affected populations already living in dire conditions may soon face even greater danger to their lives and health due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the onset of the rainy season and floods”, the UN agency said.

Come June, primary healthcare services may no longer be available for women and children, the elderly and those living with disabilities.

These services range from maternal and child health, including the screening of under-fives to detect malnutrition, sexual and reproductive health services and testing and treatment for HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

‘A right and necessity’

“Health is not a luxury, it’s a right and a necessity. We must mobilize to ensure no one is left behind,” said Jacqueline Weekers, Director of Migration Health for IOM. 

“In the past year, we have learned the hard way that when some people don’t have access to health services, everyone can be at risk.”

Before COVID-19, South Sudan’s health system was already heavily dependent on humanitarian actors who now face worrying funding shortfalls, IOM said, in an appeal for $744,175 per month to continue providing life-saving care. 

Essential health services are provided in former UN Protection of Civilian sites, host communities as well as remote and hard-to-reach locations serviced by the IOM’s mobile rapid response teams

UN envoy Gordon Brown urges G7 countries to fund global COVID vaccination push

Speaking during the regular briefing by the World Health Organization (WHO), and ahead of next month’s G7 summit, Mr. Brown, who is the UN’s Special Envoy for Global Education, said inaction will only lead to greater global division. 

A life or death choice 

“By our failure to extend vaccination more rapidly to every country, we are choosing who lives and who dies”, he warned. 

“And I say the world is already too deeply divided between rich and poor to allow a new unbridgeable divide to become entrenched between the world’s vaccinated who live, and the under-vaccinated who are at risk of dying.” 

As Prime Minister, Mr. Brown hosted the G20 summit in 2009, where the world’s major economies committed an additional $1.1 trillion to address the fallout from the global financial crisis,  He is now on a campaign to galvanize support to demand that the G7 “deploy its wealth to end the disease.”  

More COVID-19 cases were reported in the past two weeks than in the first six months of the pandemic, with India and Brazil accounting for half, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told journalists. 

“The G7 countries are the world’s economic and political leaders. They’re also home to many of the world’s vaccine producers. We will only solve the vaccine crisis with the leaders of these countries”, he said. 

Shared threat, shared solutions 

Tedros reported that the landmark global collaboration developing and delivering COVID-19 vaccines to countries worldwide, known as the ACT Accelerator, remains $19 billion underfunded. Up to $45 billion will be needed next year to inoculate most adults. 

“We face a shared threat that we can only overcome with shared solutions”, he said. “Sharing financial resources, sharing vaccine doses and production capacity, and sharing technology, know-how and waiving intellectual property.” 

Formula for ‘burden-sharing’ 

For Mr. Brown, mass global vaccination is not an act of charity, but “the best insurance policy for the world”.  Though costing billions now, the result will be “trillions of additional economic output, made possible when trade resumes in a COVID-free world.” 

The $60 billion in funding is required not only for vaccines, but also for vital medical supplies, diagnostics and medical oxygen “currently and shamefully in short supply in India and elsewhere”. 

He provided a formula for rich countries to shoulder the cost, based on national income, current wealth and benefits from the resumption of trade. 

The breakdown would see the United States covering 27 per cent, Europe 23 per cent, Japan six per cent and the UK five per cent. Australia, Canada and South Korea would pay two per cent each.   

“I say to the G7…you have the power and the ability to pay for nearly two-thirds of the cost and secure a historic breakthrough by agreeing an equitable burden sharing formula that could cover global health provision”, he said. 

Mr. Brown added that the world’s major economies, the G20, could cover more than 80 per cent of the cost and donate urgently needed vaccine doses, while the world’s 30 richest countries could pay for more than 90 per cent. 

“And the same burden-sharing formula could also be applied so that instead of the familiar pandemic cycle of panic now and neglect later, the world invests now when there is a cash shortfall, and for the future in pandemic preparedness …to ensure that even if future outbreaks happen, pandemics become preventable.”

Latest deadly Ebola virus outbreak in DR Congo declared over

The virus – an often-fatal illness spread through contact with bodily fluids, which kills, on average, around half of those infected – re-emerged in February, nine months after another outbreak in the same province was declared over.

In a press release, WHO congratulated the health authorities in DRC, and the health workers “on the ground for their swift response which built on the country’s previous experience in tackling Ebola outbreaks.”

Eleven confirmed cases and one probable case resulting in six deaths and six recoveries were recorded in four health zones in North Kivu, from 7 February, when the Ministry of Health announced the resurgence of Ebola in Butembo.

Results from genome sequencing conducted by the country’s National Institute of Biomedical Research, found that the first Ebola case detected in the outbreak was linked to the previous outbreak, but the source of infection is yet to be determined.

‘Huge credit’ to local workers

“Huge credit must be given to the local health workers and the national authorities for their prompt response, tenacity, experience and hard work that brought this outbreak under control”, said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “Although the outbreak has ended, we must stay alert for possible resurgence and at the same time use the growing expertise on emergency response to address other health threats the country faces.”

The response was coordinated by the Provincial Department of Health in collaboration with WHO and partners.

With nearly 60 experts on the ground, WHO helped local workers to trace contacts as soon as the outbreak was declared, providing treatment, engaging communities and vaccinating nearly 2,000 people at high risk, including over 500 frontline workers.

“Today’s declaration of an end to the latest Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a testament to the professionalism, sacrifices, and collaboration by hundreds of true health heroes, in particular the Congolese responders,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in a statement released later on Monday. “The World Health Organization is committed to helping national and local authorities, and the people of North Kivu, prevent the return of this deadly virus and to promote the overall health and well-being of all at-risk communities.”

Insecurity factor

The response was often hampered by insecurity due to armed groups in the restive region, close to the border with Uganda, and social unrest, according to WHO, “which at times limited the movement of responders”.

There were concerns too, over the potential cross-border spread of the outbreak. However, due to the effective response the outbreak was contained within North Kivu province.

“While the 12th outbreak is over, there is a need for continued vigilance and maintaining a strong surveillance system as potential flare-ups are possible in the months to come”, said WHO.

It is important to continue with sustained disease surveillance, monitoring of alerts and working with communities to detect and respond rapidly to any new cases and WHO will continue to assist health authorities with their efforts to contain quickly a sudden re-emergence of Ebola, the UN health agency added.

COVID, measles, cholera

WHO continues to work with the Government of DRC to fight other public health problems such as outbreaks of measles and cholera, and of course, the COVID-19 pandemic.

Latest figures from WHO show more than 22,000 cases and 144 deaths attributable to the coronavirus.

The 2018–2020 outbreak was the 10th in the DRC and the country’s deadliest, with 3,481 cases, 2,299 deaths and 1,162 survivors.

An ongoing Ebola outbreak also erupted in Guinea, West Africa, beginning in February.

Address inequalities to end AIDS by 2030, UN chief says in new report

Despite action and progress against HIV in some places and population groups, HIV epidemics continue to expand in others, the report revealed. It was launched just weeks ahead of a major UN General Assembly meeting on AIDS. 

“It is imperative to break out of an increasingly costly and unsustainable cycle of achieving some progress against HIV but ultimately not enough to bring about an end to the pandemic”, the Secretary-General said in the report. 

“Inequalities are the key reason why the 2020 global targets were missed. By ending inequalities, transformative outcomes can be achieved for people living with HIV, communities and countries.” 

New infections triple 

In 2016, the UN General Assembly set the target of having fewer than 500,000 new HIV infections by 2020.  Last year, the figure was 1.7 million, or three times the target.  Similarly, the 690,000 AIDS-related deaths in 2019 far exceed the goal of less than 500,000 deaths a year. 

“Ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 is still within reach—many countries are showing that rapid progress against HIV is possible when evidence-informed strategies and human rights-based approaches are adopted”, said Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS, which is leading the global fight against the disease.  

“But it requires bold political leadership to challenge and address the social injustices and inequalities that continue to make certain groups of people and entire communities highly vulnerable to HIV infection.” 

Address inequalities, prioritize prevention 

The report underscores that addressing social and structural factors that perpetuate inequalities is key.  

For example, gender inequality, anchored by harmful gender norms, restricts women’s use of HIV services, and sexual and reproductive health services. This can impact decision-making, including the ability to refuse unwanted sex or to negotiate safer sex. 

Vulnerable, marginalized and criminalized communities also remain at higher risk of HIV infection because they are not receiving essential information and HIV services, whether for prevention or care.  These groups include gay men and other men who have sex with men, people who use drugs, sex workers, transgender people, prisoners and migrants. 

Get back on track 

The 10 recommendations for putting the world back on the path to ending AIDS cover issues such as addressing inequalities and reaching all people at risk of HIV infection.   

The goal is to keep new infections to under 370,000, and AIDS-related deaths to under 250,000, by 2025. 

They call for closing gaps in HIV testing and treatment, and putting “gender equality and the human rights of women and girls in all their diversity” at the centre of efforts to mitigate risk. 

Other steps call for prioritizing HIV prevention to ensure that 95 per cent of people at risk have prevention options by 2025, and eliminating new infections among children. 

Lessons in preparedness 

The report also outlined how the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed social inequalities and health system weaknesses.  

The Secretary-General said the world should leverage experience from responding to the AIDS crisis to strengthen health systems and improve pandemic preparedness.  

He also appealed for more global solidarity, including to increase annual HIV investments in low and middle-income countries to $29 billion by 2025.

Vaccinated Europeans now outnumber those infected by COVID, but ‘threat remains present’

Based on confirmed cases, 5.5 per cent of the entire European population has now had COVID-19, while 7 per cent has completed a full vaccination series.

But WHO Regional Director for Europe, Hans Kluge said in a video message, “the virus still carries the potential to inflict devastating effects”.

“As a matter of fact, close to half of all COVID-19 infections in the Region since January last year were reported to WHO during the first 4 months of this year”, he added.

Shaping the pandemic’s course

Although new cases fell significantly last week, for the first time in two months, infection rates across the region remain “extremely high”, according to Dr. Kluge, who noted that individual and collective public health and social measures in most countries, remain “dominant factors in shaping the pandemic’s course”.

Crucially, national governments in the region are slowly but surely vaccinating those most at risk.

“To date, some 215 million doses of vaccine have been administered”, said the WHO official.

Approximately 16 per cent of the region’s population has had a first vaccine dose, as well as 81 per cent of health workers in 28 countries throughout the region.

Hospital admissions are decreasing and death rates are falling in high-risk groups with the highest vaccination rates.

“Vaccines are saving lives, and they will change the course of this pandemic and eventually help end it”, said Dr. Kluge.

‘Clearest path to normal’

The WHO Regional Director maintained that vaccines alone will not end the pandemic but along with strong public health measures, they offer “the clearest path back to normal”.

He underscored the importance of continuing to share information, engage communities and maintain surveillance, saying otherwise “we can’t identify new variants”.

“And without contact tracing, governments may need to reimpose restrictive measures”, Dr. Kluge warned.

Vital immunizations

Every year during European Immunization Week, WHO highlights that for over 200 years, vaccines have protected against life-threatening diseases.

“Today they help protect against more than 20 diseases, from pneumonia to cervical cancer and now also COVID-19”, said Dr. Kluge.

Vaccines are bringing us closer to ending this pandemic, eradicating polio and eliminating measles, cervical cancer and other vaccine-preventable diseases.

And they are helping to edge populations into a world without the threat of antibiotic resistance.

“The fact that the countries of the European Region on average reached 96% of children scheduled to receive their first dose of measles vaccine in 2019, is testament to the commitment of governments in the Region to eliminate measles”, he said.

“We now need that commitment to vaccinating against the SARS-CoV-2 virus”.

Beyond COVID

To keep an upper hand on vaccine-preventable diseases, health systems must provide essential primary health care, including routine inoculations while controlling the pandemic.

Dr. Kluge recalled that faltering immunization rates in 2019 led to more than 100,000 measles cases, warning that that when routine immunization services are temporarily interrupted – as also witnessed a year ago in European countries hardest hit by the first wave of COVID – infectious disease outbreaks may flare up further down the line.

“Hard-earned success can slip away fast”, he said urging “high immunization coverage with routine vaccines”.

For vaccines to again change the course of history, they must be injected into people’s arms, he added.

“Ultimately, it is us, the people who receive them, who make them work for the good of all”.