By Sharon Atieno South Africa joins Zimbabwe to become the leading countries in Africa to approve the use of Dapivirine vaginal ring as a HIV prevention method for women. Developed by the International Partnership for Microbicides (IPM), the vaginal ring is a longer-acting HIV prevention product made of flexible silicone, that slowly releases the antiretroviral […]

By Mary Hearty Since Yellow Fever is a viral hemorrhagic disease which still has no specific anti-viral drug that can effectively treat it, the Kenyan Ministry of Health plans to roll out vaccines in the high risk counties. This includes Isiolo County and the neighboring counties of Wajir, Garissa, Marsabit, Meru, Samburu, Baringo, Elgeyo-Marakwet, West-Pokot, […]

By Sharon Atieno Kenya is set to be the first country in Africa to host a messenger RNA vaccine facility. This is as a result of a memorandum of understanding between the Kenyan government and Moderna, a global biotech company. The company will invest about US$ 500M in the establishment of the facility which is […]

By Gift Briton With drug-resistant diseases contributing to nearly five million deaths every year, global leaders and experts have called on all countries to urgently establish and implement policies and regulation to reduce antimicrobial pollution as this would help in combating the growing levels of drug resistance and protecting the environment. The Global Leaders Group(GLG) on Antimicrobial […]

By Mary Hearty By the end of next year, one in five adults and one in ten children and teenagers in 10 high-burden African countries are likely to be obese if robust prevention measures are not taken to reverse the trend, a new World Health Organization (WHO) analysis on obesity reveals. The analysis finds that the […]

By Clifford Akumu A safe dose of an antibiotic rarely used in infants admitted in hospitals, could be used to treat babies with neonatal sepsis signaling a major boost to cut infant mortality rates in the country,a study finds. Researchers say they conducted the trial to determine which dose to use or safety of the […]

By Sharon Atieno Stigma and discrimination against people affected with tuberculosis (TB) are the leading human rights barriers hindering access to TB prevention, diagnosis, treatment care and support. These are the findings of a study published in the Health and Human Rights Journal, which summarizes the results of Community, Rights and Gender (CRG) assessments carried […]

By Sharon Atieno Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia are the first recipients of the technology needed to produce mRNA vaccines in the African continent. The announcement was made by the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the European Union – African Union summit at a ceremony hosted by […]