South Africa: 30,000 Beds Needed in...

Mkhize was speaking in the Western Cape where he accompanied President Cyril Ramaphosa in assessing the province’s state of readiness in tackling COVID-19.

COVID Trash Becomes Health and Environment...

As hospitals in New York treat the flood of patients with COVID and as people wear masks and gloves to grocery stores and banks, discarded Personal Protection Equipment dumped in the city’s streets is becoming a health and environmental hazard

Philippines : Unemployment and New Poverty:...

This is what Catherine Dela Cruz, Catholic volunteer engaged in Manila in assistance and solidarity programs promoted by the Church, confirms to Fides: “The poor are experiencing the uncertainty of food supply and the certainty of hunger. The poor communities in urban areas are heavily affected by the community quarantine. Many have lost their jobs and, with the lockdown imposed since 15 March, many have no way of obtaining food”.

COVID-19: Nairobi Water Shortage

Some parts of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, have been without running water for weeks, after a landslide destroyed a water pipe, making frequent handwashing for coronavirus prevention a challenge. Water distribution points have been set up to help tens of thousands of Kenyans to cope. But the gatherings to collect rationed water risks exposing more people to the virus

COVID-19: Re-Opening of South African Schools

After a few fits and starts, South Africa will gradually open schools this coming week, and feelings are mixed about the event as students between 7th and 12th grade go in first. Is it safe? Is it too soon, or overdue?

WHO: COVID-19, Ebola Update

WHO’s Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus said the Executive Group of the Solidarity Trial had last week decided to implement a temporary pause of the hydroxychloroquine arm of the trial, “because of concerns raised about the safety of the drug.”

Global Poverty Set for Alarming Increase,...

The forecasts make for dismal reading. The coronavirus has wreaked havoc across the globe but one of the most alarming consequences of the potentially deadly pathogen will be a likely dramatic increase in poverty. According to major charities, banks and international agencies,as many as 420 million more people will slip into poverty this year — …

Continue reading “Global Poverty Set for Alarming Increase, Analysts Warn”

Tanzanian Mother Fights to Protect High-Risk...

Zuhura Hassan is a mother in Tanzania struggling to keep her son safe during the pandemic. Zuhura’s son, a 5-year-old boy named Hayyan Hamoud, is one of the estimated 11,000 Tanzanian children who are born with sickle cell disease each year. SCD is a blood disorder that leads to immunity deficiency. This puts Hayyan Hammnd into a high-risk group that could become more severely compromised by COVID-19 should it infect him

Nigerian E-health Start-up Improving Access to...

The World Health Organization has warned that malaria deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa could double this year to 769,000 due to disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Nigeria has the highest cases of malaria in the world but with the global focus on controlling the spread of COVID-19, many malaria patients are not getting to hospitals and intervention could fall through the cracks. Nigerian technology startup Wellahealth is trying to bridge the gap with rapid malaria testing. Timothy Obiezu reports from Abuja

UN Secretary-General Launches Policy Brief on...

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres speaks with Dr. Heval Kelli, former Syrian Refugee and Cardiologist, during a launch of a new policy brief on the impact of COVID-19