With advanced features like Evidence Gap Maps and an AI-powered tool, TMGL GPT, the Library promises to transform access to trusted information and accelerate research worldwide.

The UN health agency unveiled the digital library at the end of the second WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine, jointly organised with the Government of India, concluded on Monday in New Delhi.

Innovation took centre stage with the launch of Health & Heritage Innovations (H2I), an initiative to nurture breakthrough ideas that bridge traditional practices with cutting-edge technologies such as AI, genomics, and digital health.

From over 1,000 submissions, 21 finalists were announced at the Summit and will enter a year-long acceleration programme to refine prototypes, receive scientific and regulatory guidance, and connect with policy-makers and investors.

WHO also announced the Strategic and Technical Advisory Group on Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Medicine (STAG-TM), a new advisory body to guide the Global Strategy.

Comprised of 19 independent experts, STAG-TM will shape research priorities, develop standards, and advise on integration into health systems. At its inaugural meeting during the Summit, the group set urgent priorities: evidence generation, preservation of traditional knowledge, digital innovation, and capacity building.

Countries rallied behind the Delhi Declaration from 26 Member States signaling a new era for traditional medicine.

This collective pledge focuses on integrating traditional medicine into primary health care, strengthening regulation and safety standards, investing in research, and building interoperable data systems to track outcomes.

It’s a shift from recognition to results – ensuring traditional medicine is not a parallel system but a driver of universal health coverage.

“Through the Delhi Commitment, countries have agreed not only on why traditional medicine matters – but on how to act,”  Dr Tedros  Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said.

“Traditional medicine can help to address many of the threats to health of our modern world: the growing burden of non-communicable diseases; inequitable access to health services; and climate change.

“It can help to support care that is person-centred, culturally grounded, and holistic.”

Looking ahead, WHO will work with Member States to turn these commitments into reality– scaling access to trusted knowledge, accelerating innovation, and embedding TM into health systems everywhere.

The Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025–2034 charts a bold course toward a future where care is more inclusive, culturally grounded, and resilient.

The summit marked a major milestone for global health as it drew over 16, 000 online registrations and brought together 800 delegates from more than 100 countries, including ministers from over 20 nations.

Combined with a strong line up of 160 speakers, the global traditional medicine community shared insights on how traditional medicine (TM) can strengthen health systems with more safe, evidence-based, and affordable care.

The energy in Delhi was palpable as ministers, scientists, indigenous leaders, and practitioners came together to advance the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025-2034.

Source: NAN

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WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on the platform X that 41 children, accompanied by 145 relatives and caregivers, were safely transported out of Gaza for specialized medical attention.

A WHO spokesperson confirmed all the patients were children, adding that due to “operational concerns,” the countries receiving the young patients could not yet be disclosed for security reasons.

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Tedros revealed that approximately 15,000 patients in Gaza were still awaiting approval to leave the enclave for medical care, underscoring the urgent need for faster humanitarian access.

He appealed to nations to “show solidarity” by supporting medical evacuations and opening all available routes to expedite the safe transfer of critically ill civilians from the conflict zone.

Medical evacuations from Gaza require permits from Israeli authorities, who control border access.

The ceasefire, in place since October 10, has faced periodic violations from both sides, according to local reports.

Source: dpa/NAN

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The Director-General of WHO, Tedros Ghebreyesus, is calling for “shifting the narrative” on the issue “to challenge harmful myths, reduce stigma and foster compassionate conversations.”

Speaking on the World Suicide Prevention Day, which is marked annually on September 10, Tedros said “each life lost leaves a profound impact on families, friends, colleagues and entire communities.”

All age groups are affected by suicide and was the third leading cause of death among 15–29-year-olds globally in 2021, the last year for which data has been gathered by WHO.

Suicide does not just occur in high-income countries and impacts all regions of the world.

Close to three quarters of global suicides occurred in low and middle-income countries in 2021.

The average number of suicides across the world in 2021 was 8.9 per 100,000 people.

In Africa, the figure stood at 11.5, while in both Europe and Southeast Asia the number of suicides was recorded at 10.1 per 100,000 people.

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The link between suicide and mental disorders, in particular, depression and alcohol use disorders, and a previous suicide attempt is well established in high-income countries.

However, many suicides happen impulsively in moments of crisis with a breakdown in the ability to deal with life stresses, such as financial problems, relationship disputes, or chronic pain and illness.

In addition, experiencing conflict, disaster, violence, abuse or loss and a sense of isolation are strongly associated with suicidal behaviour.

Suicide rates are also high among vulnerable groups who experience discrimination, such as refugees and migrants, indigenous peoples, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex (LGBTI) persons and incarcerated prisoners.

“We must move from silence to openness, from stigma to empathy, and from neglect to support,” Tedros said.

“We must create environments where people feel safe to speak up and seek help,” he stressed.

“Shifting the narrative on suicide also means driving systemic change, where governments prioritise and invest in quality mental health care and policies to ensure everyone gets the support they need.”

According to the 2024 Mental Health Atlas report by WHO, median government spending on mental health has remained at a modest two per cent of total health budgets since 2017.

Moreover, there is a significant disparity between high-income and low-income nations.

Whilst high-income nations allocate up to $65 per person to mental health, low-income nations spend as little as $0.04.

WHO recognises mental health as a universal human right.

WHO says that there are effective measures that can be taken to prevent suicide and self-harm.

Live Life, the agency’s initiative for suicide prevention, recommends limiting access to the means of suicide (eg, pesticides, firearms, certain medications).

It also recommended interaction with the media for responsible reporting of suicide.

Fostering socio-emotional life skills in adolescents, early identification, assessment, management and following up anyone who is affected by suicidal behaviours are other effective measures, according to WHO.

Source: NAN

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WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, made this known in a statement.

Ghebreyesus said the announcement followed the fourth meeting of the IHR emergency committee regarding the upsurge of Mpox, held on June 5.

According to him, the committee, recognising progress in the capacity to respond in certain countries, advised the WHO boss that the event continues to constitute a PHEIC.

He said that it was based on the continuing rise in number of cases, including a recent increase in West Africa, and likely ongoing undetected transmission in some countries beyond the African continent

“Ongoing operational challenges in responding to the event, including concerning surveillance and diagnostics, as well as a lack of funding, make prioritising response interventions challenging and require continued international support,” he said.

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Ghebreyesus concurred with the committee’s advice and issued the committee’s revised temporary recommendations to member states experiencing Mpox outbreaks.

He said the recommendations would guide countries’ efforts to prevent and control spread of the disease.

According to him, the full report of the fourth meeting will be issued in the third week of June.

“The upsurge of Mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its spread to neighbouring countries was first determined to be PHEIC by Ghebreyesus on August 14, 2024.

“Since then, the  committee has met on three additional occasions, each time, advising the director general that the event continues to constitute a PHEIC,” he said.

Source: NAN

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Ghebreyesus said this on Wednesday during an online media conference on global health issues.

According to him, in high-income countries, almost 90 per cent of children survive while in low-income and middle-income countries, survival rates are often below 30 per cent.

“In 2018, WHO established a Global Initiative on Childhood Cancer with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the United States and more than 100 other partners.

“As part of the initiative, WHO and St. Jude have also established a global platform to improve access to lifesaving medicines for children with cancer in low- and middle-income countries,” he said.

Ghebreyesus said that on Tuesday, it began distributing childhood cancer medicines at no cost in the first two countries: Mongolia and Uzbekistan.

WHO boss said that the shipments of medicines were planned for another four countries: Ecuador, Jordan, Nepal and Zambia.

“We estimate these treatments will reach about 5000 children with cancer across at least 30 hospitals in these six countries this year.

“Six more countries have been invited to join the platform, and over the next five to seven years, WHO aims to reach 120,000 children in 50 countries.

“We are very encouraged to see how this programme has grown since we started in 2018, and we thank St. Jude for its partnership,” he said.

On the world body, he said that the executive board was the second-most important decision making body in WHO after the World Health Assembly.

According to him, in 2024, the board dealt with a large agenda covering the huge range of WHO’s work: emergencies, polio, meningitis, cervical cancer, medical devices, air pollution, and universal health coverage.

“To support WHO’s work around the world, the board recommended that the Health Assembly approves the Programme Budget for 2026 and 2027.

“The Board also recommended that the Health Assembly approve the next 20 per cent increase in assessed contributions and the membership fees that countries pay.

“In 2022, member states agreed to gradually increase assessed contributions from 16 per cent of the base budget to 50 per cent,” Ghebreyesus said.

According to him, the increase approved by the board in the first week of February is the next step towards that target, and is critical for putting WHO on a more sustainable financial footing.

On Ebola, he said that so far, the Ugandan government had reported nine confirmed cases, including one death.

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The boss said that more than 260 contacts had been identified and were being monitored.

“I thank the government of Uganda for its leadership and partnership.

“WHO is on the ground supporting the government’s response.

“We are providing surge support for surveillance, laboratories, logistics, infection prevention and control in hospitals, treatment centres and research,” he said.

According to him, the National Emergency Medical teams, trained by WHO, are providing care for those infected.

The WHO boss said that it was also providing critical supplies from its logistics hubs in Nairobi and Dubai.

“There are no authorised vaccines or therapeutics against the species of Ebola virus responsible for this outbreak.

“But thanks to preparedness measures that the government took after the previous outbreak, and a global research collaboration led by WHO, we were able to start a trial of a candidate vaccine just four days after the outbreak was declared.

“A therapeutics trial will start as soon as national authorities provide approval,” he said.

Ghebreyesus said that to support the response, he was releasing two million dollars from the WHO Contingency Fund for Emergencies.

“This is in addition to the one million dollars that we contributed earlier to set up the initial response,” he said.

Source: NAN

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Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organisation, WHO.

The statement reads: “The World Health Organisation regrets the announcement that the United States of America intends to withdraw from the Organization.

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“The organisation hopes that Washington will change its decision.

“We hope the United States will reconsider and we look forward to engaging in constructive dialogue to maintain the partnership between the USA and WHO, for the benefit of the health and well-being of millions of people around the globe.’’

Source: NAN

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Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, WHO, Director-General said this on Wednesday in a statement.

“In the meantime, I have given the green light to Gavi and UNICEF to proceed with procurement of vaccines, pending the EUL decision.

“It’s vital to stress that although vaccines are a powerful tool, they are by no means the only tool.

“There are many other things that WHO, the Africa CDC and our partners are doing to stop outbreaks and save lives,” Ghebreyesus said.

According to him, for years, WHO has been supporting affected countries in Africa to respond to sporadic outbreaks of mpox.

WHO boss said that for years, the organisation had been calling for more research, and for the development of diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines for mpox.

“We see now it’s attracting the attention of the international community.

“As you know, two weeks ago today, I convened an Emergency Committee under the International Health Regulations, and on its advice, declared a public health emergency of international concern over the outbreaks of mpox in Africa,” he said.

Ghebreyesus said that such was the highest level of alarm under international health law.

“Dr Jean Kaseya, Director-General, African Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and I have spoken frequently to ensure our two organisations are working together closely to leverage our comparative advantages.

“And also to coordinate our work under one plan, with one budget, as Jean already indicated earlier,” he said.

According to him, he was proud to say that he actually proposed the idea of establishing the Africa CDC at the Abuja African Union Summit in July 2013, when he was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia.

“So, I’m very glad to see how my daughter, the Africa CDC, has grown, and is now co-leading the response to mpox with WHO.

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“Credit also to all Member States of the African Union for establishing the Africa CDC.

“On August 23, we shared our global Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan, to stop human-to-human transmission and bring these outbreaks under control.

“I’m confident that mpox can be stopped if we work in unison under the leadership of you, the governments.

“On August 23, we received the information we needed from the manufacturers of both vaccines to evaluate their products for Emergency Use Listing,” Ghebreyesus said.

According to him, the organisation expect to be able to issue that listing within the next three weeks.

He said that they were providing PCR machines and kits; supporting laboratories and scaling up their workforce

Others, he said, were training of health workers and supporting clinicians and working with local partners and civil society.

Ghebreyesus said that they were engaging affected communities in the design, implementation and evaluation of interventions.

“The last thing I would like to say is that the mpox outbreak is another reminder, if any were needed, of the critical need for a legally-binding international agreement to ensure a coordinated and equitable response to pandemics,” he said.

Source: NAN

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The world body said on Tuesday in a statement that the fund would be used to implement critical activities outlined in the global Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan (SPRP) released on August 26.

It stated that “the SPRP is a comprehensive framework developed by WHO to guide global response to Mpox, emphasising surveillance, research, equitable access to medical countermeasures and community empowerment.

“Following the declaration of a global emergency on August 14, WHO needs 87.4 million dollars over six months (September 2024 to February 2025) to work with countries, partners and other stakeholders to stop the current outbreak of Mpox.

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“The required fund will be used across WHO headquarters, regional and country offices, to enable coordination of the responses, provide technical assistance, run operations and deliver medical supplies.”

WHO, therefore, called on donors to urgently fund the full extent of the Mpox response to prevent further spread and protect those at risk.

Source: NAN

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The announcement is made in a statement issued by the world health body.

The plan which will run from September 2024 to February 2025, requiring 135 million U.S. dollars in funding.

It also includes coordinating global, regional, and national efforts, it aims to enhance surveillance and response strategies, ensure equitable access to diagnostics and vaccines, reduce animal-to-human transmission, and empower communities in outbreak control.

The organisation made this known on Monday in a statement.

WHO said the unveiling followed the declaration of a public health emergency of international concern by Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, WHO, Director-General on August 14.

According to it, a funding appeal for what WHO needs to deliver on the plan will be launched shortly.

The WHO said that the plan, which builds on the temporary recommendations and standing recommendations issued by the Ghebreyesus focuses on implementing comprehensive surveillance, prevention, readiness.

Others are response strategies; advancing research and equitable access to medical counter-measures like diagnostic tests and vaccines; minimizing animal-to-human transmission; and empowering communities to actively participate in outbreak prevention and control.

According to the WHO, strategic vaccination efforts will focus on individuals at the highest risk, including close contacts of recent cases and healthcare workers, to interrupt transmission chains.

“At the global-level, the emphasis is on strategic leadership, timely evidence-based guidance, and access to medical counter-measures for the most at-risk groups in affected countries.

“WHO is working with a broad range of international, regional, national and local partners and networks to enhance coordination across key areas of preparedness, readiness and response.

“This includes engagement with the ACT-Accelerator Principals group; the Standing Committee on Health Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response; the R and D Blueprint for Epidemics; and the interim Medical Counter Measures Network (i-MCM Net),” it stated.

It said that WHO R and D Blueprint, along with Africa CDC, Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, CEPI, and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, would host a virtual scientific conference on August 29 to 30 to align mpox research with outbreak control goals.

Ghebreyesus said that the mpox outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighbouring countries can be controlled and stopped.

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He said that doing so required a comprehensive and coordinated plan of action between international agencies, national and local partners, civil society, researchers and manufacturers, and our member states.

“This SPRP provides that plan, based on the principles of equity, global solidarity, community empowerment, human rights, and coordination across sectors,” WHO boss said.

According to him, WHO headquarters and regional offices have established incident management support teams to lead preparedness, readiness and response activities, and are significantly scaling up staff in affected countries.

He said that within the Africa Region, where need was greatest, the WHO Regional Office for Africa, AFRO, in collaboration with Africa CDC, would jointly spearhead the coordination of mpox response efforts.

“WHO AFRO and Africa CDC have agreed on a one-plan, one-budget approach as part of the Africa Continental Mpox Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan, currently under preparation.

“At the national and sub-national level, health authorities will adapt strategies in response to current epidemiological trends,” he said.

Source: NAN

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Mpox – formerly called monkeypox – is a viral disease endemic in Central and West Africa.

It can be transmitted through physical contact with an infected person, animal or contaminated materials.

Symptoms include skin rash or lesions, accompanied by fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes.

Mpox came to global prominence two years ago after cases emerged across the world amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

That outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern in July 2022 and ended the following May.

In light of the situation, and the potential for further international spread within and outside Africa, WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus convened an Emergency Committee.

The committee is to advise him on whether the outbreak represents a public health emergency of international concern.

The designation is the UN agency’s highest level of alert.

“The committee will meet as soon as possible and will be made up of independent experts from a range of relevant disciplines from around the world,” he said in Geneva on Wednesday.

Ghebreyesus said the DRC had been experiencing a severe outbreak of mpox since the beginning of the year.

More than 14,000 cases and 511 deaths have been reported.

Although outbreaks have been reported in the country for decades, and the number of cases reported annually has been increasing steadily, the caseload for the first six months of this year matches the total for all of 2023.

“In the past month, about 50 confirmed and more suspected cases have been reported in four countries neighbouring the DRC that have not reported before: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda,” he said.

Ghebreyesus explained that mpox outbreaks are caused by different viruses called clades.

Clade 1 has been circulating in the DRC for years, while clade 2 was responsible for the global outbreak which began in 2022.

The current outbreak in the eastern DRC is caused by a new offshoot of clade 1, called clade 1b, which causes more severe disease than clade 2.

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It has been confirmed in Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, while the clade in Burundi is still being analysed.

“At the same time, cases of clade 1a have been reported this year in DRC, the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo, while clade 2 has been reported in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Nigeria and South Africa,” Ghebreyesus said.

WHO is working with the governments of the affected countries, the Africa Centre for Disease Control, non-governmental organisations, civil society and other partners, to understand and address the drivers of these outbreaks.

Ghebreyesus stressed that stopping transmission will require a comprehensive response that puts communities at the centre.

WHO has also developed a 15 million dollars regional response plan to support surveillance, preparedness and response activities.

This is in addition to releasing 1 million dollars from an emergencies’ fund to support scale-up of the response, with more to follow.

Currently, two mpox vaccines have been approved by WHO-listed national regulatory authorities, and which its expert group on immunisations, SAGE, have also recommended.

“I have triggered the process for Emergency Use Listing of both vaccines, which will accelerate vaccine access particularly for lower-income countries, which have not yet issued their own national regulatory approval,” he said.

Emergency Use Listing means that the global vaccine alliance, Gavi, and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) will be able to procure doses for distribution.

The partners were also members of the global mechanism to ensure COVID-19 vaccine equity, known as COVAX.

Source: NAN

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