With Ebola still flaring in the Democratic Republic of Congo, frontline medics are straining to contain the disease while research teams worldwide sprint to produce a vaccine tailored to the specific strain driving the crisis. The epicentre lies in Ituri province in the country’s northeast, where ongoing conflict, mass displacement, a sizable migrant population, and underfunded clinics create a perfect storm that complicates efforts to halt transmission.

South Africa has begun rolling out a new line of defense against HIV: a six-monthly preventive injection that is now available free of charge at hundreds of public health facilities. The anti-HIV jab, which prevents HIV through sex, is currently stocked at 360 government clinics across six provinces, according to the health department’s list of clinics. The provinces included in the initial rollout are Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, North West and the Western Cape. The Northern Cape, Limpopo and the…

After a visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo, World Health Organisation Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the country’s Ebola outbreak is beginning to turn a corner, even as major hurdles persist in testing, surveillance, vaccine development and winning community trust. What he witnessed on the ground, he added, left him hopeful. Tedros reported a decline in cases. He said 344 infections have been confirmed in the DR Congo, including 60 deaths. At the same time, suspected cases have fallen sharply—from…

Despite dramatic leaps in medical science, Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) is still one of the world’s most prevalent birth defects—and it continues to test health systems with stark gaps in care. A new World Heart Federation report estimates CHD affected 2.3 million children in 2023, noting that survival has improved as diagnosis and treatment have advanced, even as deep inequalities persist, especially in low-income countries. According to the report, the specialists and pediatric heart programs required to diagnose and…

Trust from communities on the front lines will determine whether health officials can rein in a fast-moving Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighbouring Uganda, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned, underscoring that public cooperation is as vital as medical expertise in crises like this. Speaking in Bunia, the outbreak’s epicentre, Tedros stressed the need to listen to local voices and promote early treatment as response teams confront the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola,…

Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is bracing for what the World Health Organization (WHO) calls a "catastrophic collision of disease and conflict," as a rapidly advancing Ebola outbreak outstrips efforts to contain it in a region already scarred by armed groups, displacement and severe hunger. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Ebola Bundibugyo virus outbreak in Ituri province is unfolding in conditions that undermine basic public health measures, with insecurity, assaults on clinics and…

Despite significant advancements, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) continue to fly under the radar of global health initiatives. To date, 61 nations have successfully eradicated at least one NTD, showcasing what sustained dedication can achieve. However, the fallout from neglecting these diseases is dire: children lose vital educational opportunities, while adults struggle to maintain employment, directly impacting household income and overall quality of life. Furthermore, stigma and discrimination thrust individuals into…

Uganda has shut its border with the Democratic Republic of Congo as officials race to contain an Ebola outbreak attributed to the Bundibugyo strain, a move that has triggered stepped-up regional surveillance and emergency health measures. The closure, effective "with immediate effect," was ordered by the national Ebola task force chaired by Vice President Jesca Alupo after a rise in infections among Ugandan health workers who had treated patients from DR Congo. All authorised entrants will be screened, and travellers from…

The World Health Organization is sounding the alarm over a rapidly deteriorating Ebola situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, warning that relentless violence and a deepening humanitarian emergency are undermining efforts to contain the virus. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the epicenter lies in Ituri Province, a conflict-hit area where nearly five million people live amid persistent insecurity and a severe humanitarian crisis. Ongoing attacks are forcing civilians to flee alongside health…

Windhoek residents who turned on their taps to find brownish water are seeing the effects of a sudden strain on the city’s supply system, officials say. The city has linked the discolouration to an interruption in water supply from the Namibia Water Corporation following damage to the pipeline that feeds water from the Von Bach Water Treatment Plant to Windhoek. The disruption has led reservoir levels across Windhoek to drop significantly, and the city says the lower levels allowed residue that had settled at the bottom of…