Good morning, good afternoon and good evening.
Last Friday, the Ministry of Health of Guinea informed WHO of a case of Marburg virus disease in the country’s south-west, in a man who died 8 days after onset of symptoms. This is the first known case of Marburg in West Africa.
WHO and our partners are supporting Guinea’s Ministry of Health to investigate the source of the outbreak, trace contacts, and inform the local community about how to protect themselves.
About 150 contacts have been identified and are being followed up, including three family members and a health worker, who have been identified as high-risk close contacts.
Marburg is a very different virus to the one that causes COVID-19, but many of the elements of the response are the same: isolating and caring for those infected, tracing and quarantining their contacts, and engaging local communities in the response.
There is no licensed vaccine for Marburg, although there are vaccines under development, and WHO is working with our partners to seek opportunities to assess them during this outbreak through the R&D Blueprint for Epidemics.
By contrast, we have several effective vaccines for COVID-19, and yet cases and deaths continue to rise.
Last week, the 200 millionth case of COVID-19 was reported to WHO, just six months after the world passed 100 million reported cases. And we know that the real number of cases is much higher.
As I said recently, whether we reach 300 million, and how fast we get there, depends on all of us.
At the current trajectory, we could pass 300 million reported cases early next year. But we can change that.
We’re all in this together, but the world is not acting like it.
We already have many tools to prevent, test for and treat COVID-19, including oxygen, dexamethasone and IL-6 blockers. But we need more, for patients at all ends of the clinical spectrum, from mild to severe disease. And we need health workers that are trained to use them in a safe environment.
In October, WHO reported results of the Solidarity Trial, which tested four treatments for COVID-19, involving almost 13,000 patients in 500 hospitals, in 30 countries.
That trial showed that the four drugs had little or no effect on hospitalized patients with COVID-19. We expect final results from that trial next month.
Today we are pleased to announce the next phase in the Solidarity trial, called Solidarity PLUS.
Solidarity PLUS will test three drugs: artesunate, a treatment for severe malaria; imatinib, a drug for certain cancers; and infliximab, a treatment for immune system disorders such as Crohn’s disease.
These drugs were chosen by an independent panel of experts that evaluates all the available evidence on all potential therapeutics.
The trial involves thousands of researchers at more than 600 hospitals in 52 countries.
I would like to thank the governments, hospitals, researchers and patients who are participating in the trial, as well as the three manufacturers who have donated the drugs for the trial: Ipca, Novartis and Johnson & Johnson.
One of the first countries to enrol patients in the Solidarity PLUS trial is Finland.
Today, we’re honoured to be joined by Finland’s Minister of Social Affairs and Health, Her Excellency Hanna Sarkkinen.
Your Excellency, thank you so much for joining us today. You have the floor.
[MINISTER SARKKINEN ADDRESSES THE MEDIA]
Thank you, Your Excellency, and thank you for your leadership in advancing research on therapeutics.
One of the strengths of the Solidarity PLUS trial is that it is a truly global study, with researchers all over the world participating.
Today we’re joined by two principal investigators in the Solidarity PLUS trial: Professor Samba Sow, Director of the Center for Vaccine Development in Mali, and Professor Marco Medina, from the National Autonomous University of Honduras.
Professor Sow is also WHO’s Special Envoy for COVID-19 in Africa.
Samba, thank you for your leadership in the pandemic, your participation in Solidarity PLUS, and for joining us today. You have the floor.
[PROFESSOR SOW ADDRESSES THE MEDIA]
Thank you so much, Samba.
Professor Marco Medina is also no stranger to WHO. He is a neurologist and Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Community Intervention in Epilepsy in Honduras.
Professor Medina, thank you for joining us. We know Honduras is one of many countries now facing an increase in COVID-19 cases and deaths. We look forward to hearing from you about the situation in Honduras and how you think the Solidarity PLUS trial can help.
You have the floor.
[PROFESSOR MEDINA ADDRESSES THE MEDIA]
Thank you, Professor Medina. We welcome your engagement and support. My sincere hope is that one or more of the drugs being tested in the Solidarity PLUS trial will prove to be effective in treating COVID-19.
WHO remains committed to working with you and with all of the researchers and patients in the trial to advance the science, find new solutions, and to do it all in solidarity.
Tarik, back to you.
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced the next phase in its Solidarity trial: Solidarity PLUS will enroll hospitalized patients to test three new drugs in hospitalized COVID-19 patients.
These therapies - artesunate, imatinib and infliximab – were selected by an independent expert panel for their potential in reducing the risk of death in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. They are already used for other indications: artesunate is used for severe malaria, imatinib for certain cancers, and infliximab for diseases of the immune system such as Crohn’s Disease and rheumatoid arthritis.
These drugs were donated for the trial by their manufacturers.
“Finding more effective and accessible therapeutics for COVID-19 patients remains a critical need, and WHO is proud to lead this global effort,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “I would like to thank the participating governments, pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, clinicians and patients, who have come together to do this in true global solidarity.”
The Solidarity PLUS trial is a platform trial that represents the largest global collaboration among WHO Member States. It involves thousands of researchers in over 600 hospitals in 52 countries, 16 more countries than the first phase of trials. This allows the trial to assess multiple treatments at the same time using a single protocol, recruiting thousands of patients to generate robust estimates on the effect a drug may have on mortality--even moderate effects.
It also allows new treatments to be added and ineffective treatments to be dropped throughout the course of the trial.
Previously, four drugs were evaluated by the trial. The results showed that remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir and interferon had little or no effect on hospitalized patients with COVID-19.
Through the Solidarity PLUS trial, researchers across the world have an opportunity to use their expertise and resources to contribute to global COVID-19 research.
About the drugs
Artesunate
Produced by Ipca, is used to treat malaria. In the trial, it will be administered intravenously for 7 days, using the standard dose recommended for the treatment of severe malaria.
Artesunate is a derivative of artemisinin, an antimalarial drug extracted from the herb Artemisia annua. Artemisinin and its derivatives have been extensively used in the treatment of malaria and other parasitic diseases for over 30 years, and are regarded as being very safe. The WHO COVID-19 Therapeutics Advisory Group recommended evaluating the anti-inflammatory properties of artesunate.
Imatinib
Produced by Novartis, is used to treat certain cancers. In the trial, it will be administered orally, once daily, for 14 days. The dose used is the standard maintenance dose, which is at the lower end of the dose patients with haematological malignancies are given over extended periods.
Imatinib is a small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitor, formulated as an oral chemotherapy drug used to treat certain types of cancer. Experimental and early clinical data suggest that imatinib reverses pulmonary capillary leak. A randomized clinical trial performed in the Netherlands reported that imatinib might confer clinical benefit in hospitalized COVID-19 patients, in the absence of safety issues.
Infliximab
Produced by Johnson and Johnson, is used to treat diseases of the immune system. In the trial, it will be administered intravenously as a single dose. The dose used is the standard dose that patients with Crohn’s Disease are given over extended periods.
Infliximab is a TNF alpha inhibitor, a chimeric monoclonal antibody that recognizes human TNF alpha. Anti-TNF biologics have been approved for treatment of certain autoimmune inflammatory conditions for more than 20 years, demonstrating favourable efficacy and safety in restricting broad spectrum inflammation, including in elderly populations who are most clinically vulnerable to COVID-19.
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
Geneva--6 August 2021--The World Health Organization (WHO) has been made aware of correspondences being circulated by scammers (acting under the name of Capital Finance, Inc. London), falsely notifying recipients of such correspondences that they have been selected as a beneficiary/winner of a US$1 million lottery compensation prize payment for losses and damages suffered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
These fraudulent correspondences falsely allege that the so-called “COVID-19 Lottery Compensation Prize” is brought to you by WHO, in association with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).
These scammers—who claim to be a financial management firm in London—falsely state that they have been appointed by WHO to process payment of the “COVID-19 Lottery Compensation Prize”. In addition, these scams seek to obtain personal details and, in some cases, money from the recipients of such fraudulent correspondences, including (but not limited to) by requesting recipients to urgently send the scammers: (1) a copy of the recipient’s passport or proof of identification, (2) his/her nationality, (3) his/her occupation, and (4) the recipient’s mailing address, email address and telephone number, in order to enable the scammers to process the fraudulent lottery compensation prize payment.
WHO seeks to warn the public at large that the “COVID-19 Lottery Compensation Prize” is a fraudulent scam being falsely perpetrated in the name of WHO through different channels (e.g., via email, from Internet websites such as www.capitalfinanceinc.net, etc.). In this respect, WHO would like to clarify to the public the following:
The “COVID-19 Lottery Compensation Prize” is a fraudulent scam;
According to our records, WHO has never appointed or entered into any contractual relationship with any entity by the name of Capital Finance, Inc.;
WHO is not involved or associated in any way with the “COVID-19 Lottery Compensation Prize” fraudulent scam;
WHO is not offering or conducting a lottery prize to compensate individuals, whose names or contact details are purportedly selected at random, for the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic;
WHO does not conduct lotteries and does not offer prizes, funds, certificates, bank and/or automated teller machine (ATM) cards, or compensation for Internet fraud;
WHO does not request individuals to provide their bank accounts and/or other personal information such as copies of passports or identification cards, mailing addresses, email addresses, telephone numbers, or occupations.
WHO strongly recommends that recipients of correspondences such as those described above exercise extreme caution in respect of such correspondences and solicitations. The public should be aware that identity theft and/or financial loss could result from the transfer of personal information or money to those issuing such fraudulent correspondence. Victims of such scams are encouraged to report the scams to their local law enforcement authorities for appropriate action.
WHO asks the public to remain vigilant against fraudulent emails and recommends the use of reliable sources to obtain factual information about COVID-19 and other health issues.
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
Good morning, good afternoon and good evening.
In January of this year, a midwife from Uganda called Harriet Nayiga joined our press conference to talk about her experience as a health worker during the pandemic.
While vaccines were being rolled out in the wealthiest countries, Harriet was one of many health workers in Africa and around the world who was still waiting for her turn to be vaccinated.
At the time, Uganda – like much of Africa – had relatively few cases of COVID-19.
But starting in May of this year, Uganda experienced a surge in cases and deaths, as variants tore through a largely unvaccinated population.
This morning, Harriet sent us this email:
“I got my first shot and am yet to receive the second.
“The situation was tough for the last two months, where over 2000 people died so far, including health workers.
“We hope that the vaccines will be able to reach different parts of the country and hope that people will be responsible enough and go for vaccination.
“Otherwise, COVID is spreading, though people are now moving to work in order to earn a living, since the majority depend on hand to mouth.”
This is the reality for hundreds of millions of people around the world – they cannot afford to stay at home. They work to eat.
These populations need vaccines urgently, especially health workers, older people and other vulnerable groups.
And yet even while hundreds of millions of people are still waiting for their first dose, some rich countries are moving towards booster doses.
So far, more than 4 billion vaccine doses have been administered globally. More than 80% have gone to high- and upper-middle income countries, even though they account for less than half of the world’s population.
I understand the concern of all governments to protect their people from the Delta variant.
But we cannot accept countries that have already used most of the global supply of vaccines using even more of it, while the world’s most vulnerable people remain unprotected.
In late May, I called for global support for a “sprint to September”, to enable every country to vaccinate at least 10% of its population by the end of September.
We’re now more than halfway to that target date, but we’re not on track.
When I issued that challenge in May, high-income countries had administered around 50 doses for every 100 people. Since then, that number has doubled. High-income countries have now administered almost 100 doses for every 100 people.
Meanwhile, low-income countries have only been able to administer 1.5 doses for every 100 people, due to lack of supply.
We need an urgent reversal, from the majority of vaccines going to high-income countries, to the majority going to low-income countries.
Accordingly, WHO is calling for a moratorium on boosters until at least the end of September, to enable at least 10% of the population of every country to be vaccinated.
To make that happen, we need everyone’s cooperation, especially the handful of countries and companies that control the global supply of vaccines.
The G20 has a vital leadership role to play, as the countries that are the biggest producers, the biggest consumers and the biggest donors of COVID-19 vaccines.
It’s no understatement to say that the course of the pandemic depends on the leadership of the G20 countries.
One month from now, the G20 health ministers will meet, ahead of the G20 summit in October. I call on them to make concrete commitments to support WHO’s global vaccination targets.
We call on vaccine producers to prioritize COVAX.
And we call on everyone with influence – Olympic athletes, investors, business leaders, faith leaders, and every individual in their own family and community – to support our call for a moratorium on booster shots until at least the end of September.
At the same time, we must all remember that vaccines are not the only tool. Indeed, there is no single tool that will defeat this pandemic.
We can only defeat it with a comprehensive approach of vaccines in combination with the proven public health and social measures that we know work.
Tarik, back to you.
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
FIFA has launched #ReachOut, a campaign designed to raise awareness of the symptoms of mental health conditions, encourage people to seek help when they need it, and take actions every day for better mental health. With the support of past and current football players, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), FIFA is underlining the importance of greater awareness around mental health.
In launching #ReachOut, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, said: “This campaign is very important in raising awareness about mental health conditions and encouraging a conversation which could save a life. In FIFA’s Vision 2020-2023, we pledge our commitment to make football work for society, and I thank the players and Ms Enke, who have contributed to this important initiative.
“Depression and anxiety affect rising numbers of people worldwide, and young people are among the most vulnerable. Having a conversation with family, friends or a healthcare professional can be key. FIFA is proud to launch this campaign, supported by the World Health Organization and ASEAN to encourage people to #ReachOut.”
The campaign hears from FIFA Legends Aline, Vero Boquete, Cafu, Laura Georges, Luis García, Shabani Nonda, Patrizia Panico, Fara Williams and Walter Zenga. FIFA.com also speaks with former Bolton Wanderers and Team GB forward, Marvin Sordell, and Sonny Pike, who was labelled the ‘next big thing’ at 14, about their experiences with depression. Teresa Enke also discusses the pain of losing a loved one to suicide, and her work with the Robert Enke Foundation.
Depression affects more than 260 million people in the world while around half of all mental health conditions start by age 14. Suicide is the fourth leading cause of death in young people aged 15-29. Among active football players, 23 per cent report sleep disturbance, while 9% have reported depression and a further 7% suffer from anxiety. Among retired players, these figures increase, with 28% struggling to sleep and depression and anxiety affecting 13% and 11% respectively (source: FIFPRO)
Working from home, unemployment, school closures and social isolation have affected people around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic; the challenges for people with mental health conditions, for whom access to treatment has, in many cases, been disrupted, are even greater.
“As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, it is as important as ever to look after our mental and physical health,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization. “WHO is delighted to support the #ReachOut campaign, spearheaded by FIFA to encourage people to talk about their mental health.”
The video awareness campaign features Legends, current players and special guests, who have lent their support to this mental health campaign, and at times sharing their lived experience. The campaign is being shared on FIFA digital channels, with multimedia toolkits provided to the 211 FIFA member associations and to media agencies to facilitate dissemination and use within Europe and beyond.
Meanwhile, players from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam reinforce WHO advice on how to help to keep our minds healthy, as well as our bodies, in the special ASEAN edition of #ReachOut.
Secretary-General of ASEAN Dato Lim Jock Hoi said, “Mental health and well-being are just as important as physical health and safety. Under the Chairmanship of Brunei Darussalam, ASEAN is taking steps to advance cooperation with external partners on mental health, in order to provide the ASEAN Community with the necessary and appropriate mental health and psychosocial support services.”
Notes
The World Health Organization (WHO) and FIFA signed a four-year collaboration in 2019 to promote healthy lifestyles through football globally. More information on the WHO-FIFA memorandum of understanding can be found here. The two organisations jointly launched the ‘Pass the message to kick out coronavirus’ campaign in March 2020 to share advice on effective measures to protect people from COVID-19. This was followed by the #BeActive campaign in April 2020 to encourage people to stay healthy at home during the pandemic, and #SafeHome, a campaign launched to support those at risk from domestic violence, in May 2020. More recently, the two organisations teamed up at the FIFA Club World Cup to #ACTogether to promote the need for fair access to COVID-19 vaccines, treatments and diagnostics, and to encourage people to keep practicing life-saving, everyday public health measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and to protect health.
The global campaign’s contributors include:
Aline – former Brazil defender
Vero Boquete – AC Milan forward and former Spain forward
Cafu – former AC Milan, Roma and Brazil defender
Teresa Enke – CEO of the Robert Enke Foundation
Laura Georges – former Lyon, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and France defender
Luis García - former Liverpool and Spain winger/midfielder
Shabani Nonda – former Monaco and DR Congo forward
Patrizia Panico – former SS Lazio and Italy forward
Sonny Pike – former English footballer who was labeled ‘the next big thing’ at 14 years of age
Marvin Sordell – former Bolton, Watford and Team GB forward
Fara Williams – former Reading, England and Team GB midfielder
Walter Zenga – former Inter Milan and Italy goalkeeper
Videos for download
Video 1
Video 2
FIFA recently partnered with FIFPRO to sign a three-year cooperation agreement to provide health support to hundreds of recently retired professional footballers facing the challenges that come with career transition. More information can be found here.
The ASEAN-FIFA Joint Awareness Raising Campaign on COVID-19, endorsed by the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Sports (SOMS) - a body consisting of national agencies in charge ASEAN sports cooperation - features a series of videos with ASEAN football personalities delivering messages in their local languages.
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
NEW YORK/GENEVA, 2 August 2021 – At the start of this year, governments, donors, civil society and the private sector united to launch the Nutrition for Growth Year of Action. The Year of Action is a historic opportunity to transform the way the world tackles the global commitment to eliminate child malnutrition.
Breastfeeding is central to realising this commitment.
Initiation of breastfeeding within the first hour of birth, followed by exclusive breastfeeding for six months and continued breastfeeding for up to two years or beyond offer a powerful line of defence against all forms of child malnutrition, including wasting and obesity. Breastfeeding also acts as babies’ first vaccine, protecting them against many common childhood illnesses.
While there has been progress in breastfeeding rates in the last four decades – with a 50 per cent increase in the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding globally – the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the fragility of those gains.
In many countries, the pandemic has caused significant disruptions in breastfeeding support services, while increasing the risk of food insecurity and malnutrition. Several countries have reported that producers of baby foods have compounded these risks by invoking unfounded fears that breastfeeding can transmit COVID-19 and marketing their products as a safer alternative to breastfeeding.
This year’s World Breastfeeding Week, under its theme ‘Protect Breastfeeding: A Shared Responsibility’ is a time to revisit the commitments made at the start of this year by prioritizing breastfeeding-friendly environments for mothers and babies. This includes:
· Ensuring the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes – established to protect mothers from aggressive marketing practices by the baby food industry – is fully implemented by governments, health workers and industry.
· Ensuring health care workers have the resources and information they need to effectively support mothers to breastfeed, including through global efforts such as the Baby-friendly Hospital Initiative, and guidelines on breastfeeding counselling.
· Ensuring employers allow women the time and space they need to breastfeed; including paid parental leave with longer maternity leave; safe places for breastfeeding in the workplace; access to affordable and good-quality childcare; and universal child benefits and adequate wages.
As we approach the UN Food Systems Summit in September and the Tokyo Nutrition for Growth Summit in December, governments, donors, civil society and the private sector all have an opportunity to make smart investments and commitments to tackle the global malnutrition crisis – including protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding – through stronger policies, programmes and actions.
Now is not the time to lower our ambitions. Now is the time to aim high. We are committed to making the Nutrition for Growth Year of Action a success by ensuring that every child’s right to nutritious, safe and affordable food and adequate nutrition is realized from the beginning of life, starting with breastfeeding.
UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. Across more than 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, to build a better world for everyone.
For more information about UNICEF and its work for children visit www.unicef.org
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
WHO has updated its guidance on testing strategies to account for a wider range of situations in countries, including the circulation of more transmissible variants, and the use of new tests.
Timely and accurate diagnostic testing is an essential tool in preventing and controlling the spread of COVID-19. The updated guidance describes recommendations for national testing strategies and the use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and rapid antigen tests in different transmission scenarios of the COVID-19 outbreak, including how testing might be rationalized in low resource settings.
All testing should be followed by a strong public health response including isolating those who test positive and providing them care, contact tracing and quarantine of contacts.
Read the guidance document: Recommendations for national SARS-CoV-2 testing strategies and diagnostic capacities
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
The first WHO World Local Production Forum ended today after five days of discussions centered on promoting quality and sustainable local production to improve access to medicines and other health technologies.
Delegates from over 100 countries, international partners, civil society groups, industry associations, and major investors joined WHO, WTO, UNIDO, UNICEF and UNCTAD to highlight the challenges facing local production and the steps required to address them, as well as the range of opportunities for the sector. Looking ahead, the Forum will provide a platform to drive forward efforts to support and enhance local production of health products in low- and middle-income countries.
Increasing manufacturing capacity for global security - The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of local manufacturing as a key component of pandemic response by reducing reliance on global markets and imported products.
Vaccine production was a central theme at the Forum, as were the role of new technologies and generation of flexible manufacturing strategies to develop sustained production capacity in low- and middle-income countries.
Technology transfer and licensing were seen as key to scaling up production. Sharing intellectual property and know-how will be essential, along with facilitation of voluntary licensing and effective technology transfer. It will also be vital to create a favourable environment for technology transfer. Key elements will include good governance; a skilled workforce; good access to market information and careful assessment of local capacity to receive and absorb the transferred technology.
Governments’ role is key in creating an enabling political environment and a supportive business eco-system. Such efforts must be coordinated with relevant stakeholders at national, regional and global levels.
National regulators and local manufacturers can drive quality-compliant local production and facilitate faster access to health technologies during pandemics and beyond. To do that, they need continued training, support and resources.
Low access to capital is a key limiting factor for local manufacturers in low- and middle-income countries. The greater interest expressed by key development banks and other financial institutions towards investing in the sector indicates improvement in this area, whilst the need to develop strong investment cases, including demonstration of a long term economically viable business case, were highlighted as key components of successful manufacturing projects.
A mechanism to stimulate industry engagement was recommended for strengthened collaboration with and among industry bodies with the aim of transferring priority technologies to low- and middle-income countries.
A strategic advisory group should be established by WHO in collaboration with Member States and partners to address current and future global challenges and trends in local production and technology transfer.
The next Forum will be held in The Netherlands as announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport, Hugo De Jonge. The Local Production Forum is now established as a long-term mechanism to promote dialogue and decision-making to strengthen local manufacturing capacity and move towards the shared goal of universal access to health technologies.
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
Geneva, 24 June 2021: The Directors-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Word Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreed to enhance their support to members battling COVID-19 by collaborating on a series of workshops to augment the flow of information on the pandemic and by implementing a joint platform for tripartite technical assistance to member governments relating to their needs for medical technologies. As a result of their meeting on 15 June, 2021, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Daren Tang and Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala issued the following statement.
Directors General of WHO, WIPO and the WTO agree on intensified cooperation in support of access to medical technologies worldwide to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic
On June 15, 2021, we, the Directors General of WHO, WIPO and the WTO, met in a spirit of cooperation and solidarity to map out further collaboration to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic and the pressing global challenges at the intersection of public health, intellectual property and trade. Acutely conscious of our shared responsibility to communities across the world as they confront a health crisis of unprecedented severity and scale, we pledged to bring the full extent of the expertise and resources of our respective institutions to bear in ending the COVID-19 pandemic and improving the health and well-being of all people, everywhere around the globe.
We underscored our commitment to universal, equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics, and other health technologies – a commitment anchored in the understanding that this is an urgent moral imperative in need of immediate practical action.
In this spirit, we agreed to build further on our long-standing commitment to WHO-WIPO-WTO Trilateral Cooperation that aims to support and assist all countries as they seek to assess and implement sustainable and integrated solutions to public health challenges. Within this existing cooperative framework, we agreed to enhance and focus our support in the context of the pandemic through two specific initiatives.
First, our three agencies will collaborate on the organization of practical, capacity-building workshops to enhance the flow of updated information on current developments in the pandemic and responses to achieve equitable access to COVID-19 health technologies. The aim of these workshops is to strengthen the capacity of policymakers and experts in member governments to address the pandemic accordingly. The first workshop in the series will be a workshop on technology transfer and licensing, scheduled for September. The workshop will help our members update their knowledge and understanding of how intellectual property, know-how and technology transfer work in actuality. This would be in the context of medical technologies and related products and services. This first workshop will be followed by others on related practical themes.
Secondly, we will implement a joint platform for tripartite technical assistance to countries relating to their needs for COVID-19 medical technologies, providing a one-stop shop that will make available the full range of expertise on access, IP and trade matters provided by our organizations, and other partners, in a coordinated and systematic manner. The platform for technical assistance will, in particular,
support countries to assess and prioritize unmet needs for COVID-19 vaccines, medicines and related technologies, and provide timely and tailored technical assistance in making full use of all available options to access vaccines, medicines and technologies, including through coordination between members facing similar challenges to facilitate collective responses.
These initiatives will also be underpinned by our joint efforts to collect and make accessible robust and inclusive data needed to guide an effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This will include a periodical update of the overview of COVID 19-related measures that are mapped in a key resource for trilateral cooperation, the WHO-WIPO-WTO publication 'Promoting Access to Medical Technologies and Innovation: Intersections between public health, intellectual property and trade', published in 2020.
WHO’s April call for expressions of interest has so far generated 28 offers to either provide technology for mRNA vaccines or to host a technology hub or both. There have been 25 expressions of interest from low- and middle-income country respondents who could receive the technology to produce mRNA vaccines.
Over the coming weeks, WHO will continue the rolling evaluation of other proposals and identify additional hubs, as needed, to contribute to health security and equity in all regions.
Through the COVAX partnership, WHO will continue its assessment of potential mRNA technology donors and will launch subsequent calls for other technologies, such as viral vectors and proteins, in coming months.
WHO is also hosting the Local production forum this week, to identify strategies to expand pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity in low- and middle-income countries for COVID-19 and other priority diseases.
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.
12 July 2021, Rome – There was a dramatic worsening of world hunger in 2020, the United Nations said today – much of it likely related to the fallout of COVID-19. While the pandemic’s impact has yet to be fully mapped[1], a multi-agency report estimates that around a tenth of the global population – up to 811 million people – were undernourished last year. The number suggests it will take a tremendous effort for the world to honour its pledge to end hunger by 2030.
This year’s edition of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World is the first global assessment of its kind in the pandemic era. The report is jointly published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Previous editions had already put the world on notice that the food security of millions – many children among them – was at stake. “Unfortunately, the pandemic continues to expose weaknesses in our food systems, which threaten the lives and livelihoods of people around the world,” the heads of the five UN agencies[2] write in this year’s Foreword.
They go on to warn of a “critical juncture,” even as they pin fresh hopes on increased diplomatic momentum. “This year offers a unique opportunity for advancing food security and nutrition through transforming food systems with the upcoming UN Food Systems Summit, the Nutrition for Growth Summit and the COP26 on climate change.” “The outcome of these events,” the five add, “will go on to shape the […] second half of the UN Decade of Action on Nutrition” – a global policy commitment yet to hit its stride.
Already in the mid-2010s, hunger had started creeping upwards, dashing hopes of irreversible decline. Disturbingly, in 2020 hunger shot up in both absolute and proportional terms, outpacing population growth: some 9.9 percent of all people are estimated to have been undernourished last year, up from 8.4 percent in 2019.
More than half of all undernourished people (418 million) live in Asia; more than a third (282 million) in Africa; and a smaller proportion (60 million) in Latin America and the Caribbean. But the sharpest rise in hunger was in Africa, where the estimated prevalence of undernourishment – at 21 percent of the population – is more than double that of any other region.
On other measurements too, the year 2020 was sombre. Overall, more than 2.3 billion people (or 30 percent of the global population) lacked year-round access to adequate food: this indicator – known as the prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity – leapt in one year as much in as the preceding five combined. Gender inequality deepened: for every 10 food-insecure men, there were 11 food-insecure women in 2020 (up from 10.6 in 2019).
Malnutrition persisted in all its forms, with children paying a high price: in 2020, over 149 million under-fives are estimated to have been stunted, or too short for their age; more than 45 million – wasted, or too thin for their height; and nearly 39 million – overweight.[3] A full three-billion adults and children remained locked out of healthy diets, largely due to excessive costs. Nearly a third of women of reproductive age suffer from anaemia. Globally, despite progress in some areas – more infants, for example, are being fed exclusively on breast milk – the world is not on track to achieve targets for any nutrition indicators by 2030.
In many parts of the world, the pandemic has triggered brutal recessions and jeopardized access to food. Yet even before the pandemic, hunger was spreading; progress on malnutrition lagged. This was all the more so in nations affected by conflict, climate extremes or other economic downturns, or battling high inequality – all of which the report identifies as major drivers of food insecurity, which in turn interact.[4]
On current trends, The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World estimates that Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger by 2030) will be missed by a margin of nearly 660 million people. Of these 660 million, some 30 million may be linked to the pandemic’s lasting effects.
As outlined in last year’s report, transforming food systems is essential to achieve food security, improve nutrition and put healthy diets within reach of all. This year’s edition goes further to outline six “transformation pathways”. These, the authors say, rely on a “coherent set of policy and investment portfolios” to counteract the hunger and malnutrition drivers.
Depending on the particular driver (or combination of drivers) confronting each country, the report urges policymakers to:
· Integrate humanitarian, development and peacebuilding policies in conflict areas – for example, through social protection measures to prevent families from selling meagre assets in exchange for food;
· Scale up climate resilience across food systems – for example, by offering smallholder farmers wide access to climate risk insurance and forecast-based financing;
· Strengthen the resilience of the most vulnerable to economic adversity – for example, through in-kind or cash support programmes to lessen the impact of pandemic-style shocks or food price volatility;
· Intervene along supply chains to lower the cost of nutritious foods – for example, by encouraging the planting of biofortified crops or making it easier for fruit and vegetable growers to access markets;
· Tackle poverty and structural inequalities – for example, by boosting food value chains in poor communities through technology transfers and certification programmes;
· Strengthen food environments and changing consumer behaviour – for example, by eliminating industrial trans fats and reducing the salt and sugar content in the food supply, or protecting children from the negative impact of food marketing.
The report also calls for an “enabling environment of governance mechanisms and institutions” to make transformation possible. It enjoins policymakers to consult widely; to empower women and youth; and to expand the availability of data and new technologies. Above all, the authors urge, the world must act now – or watch the drivers of hunger and malnutrition recur with growing intensity in coming years, long after the shock of the pandemic has passed.
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.