News and blog

The World Bank through its fund for the poorest countries, International Development Association (IDA), has agreed to disburse $49.3 billion to combat poverty and spur growth in the poorest nations. The funds will support some 79 countries over the next three years, focusing on financing infrastructure,...

Nicaragua recently began a routine immunization program to prevent the deadliest forms of pneumonia only a year after the vaccine was introduced in the developing world. International global health leaders celebrated with the Nicaraguan government over the release of the new pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, according to...

Greetings from Nicaragua! On Sunday, I joined Minister of Health Dr. Sonia Castro Gonzalez, GAVI board member Dr. Guillermo Gonzalez Gonzalez and my colleagues from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and UNICEF to witness the vaccination of the first child with the new vaccine...

Ask any expectant parent and you'll often hear that while pregnancy is a cause of much joy and celebration, the process of childbirth and delivery itself causes anxiety. These concerns are not without some basis, as the risks of complications for both mother and baby...

Children are unambiguously the focus of the millennium development goals (MDGs). They are directly affected by each of the MDG targets, and their wide eyes stare out from the cover of nearly every MDG report. But despite language that puts the child at the centre...

The war against schistosomiasis, one of Africa’s most common yet neglected diseases heightened recently when Merck moved to add on to their commitment to WHO to donate part of the 200 million tablets containing the active pharmaceutical ingredient praziquantel (Cesol® 600) in order to treat...

At the World Economic Forum this year, Bill Gates announced the Decade of Vaccines with a $10 billion commitment from his Foundation to support its aims and objectives. His projections suggested that expanding the use of existing and new vaccines can prevent more than 8...

"We will put an end to this epidemic." It is not often that a doctor gets to utter these words. But that is exactly what Marc LaForce, who directed a unique international program to combat meningitis, told Kyodo News during a visit to Korsimoro, a small...