Kigali, Rwanda — African Union Member States are a step closer to a coordinated response to non-communicable diseases (NCDs), injuries and mental health conditions following the finalisation of a multisectoral action plan at a five-day technical meeting convened by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). The initiative comes as NCDs account…
Nairobi — The World Health Organization (WHO) will convene the first Africa Health Data Forum in Nairobi next week, seeking to strengthen health information systems through country-led priorities, investment and closer coordination among development partners. The three-day forum, scheduled for November 10-12, 2026, will bring together African Member States, development partners, technical and financial institutions,…
Have you ever gone to your GP to find out why you’re always tired, only to be told to lose weight? Or perhaps you’ve joined a gym hoping to move more, only to be bombarded with messages about “burning fat” and achieving the “ideal body”. These experiences reflect a common approach to health promotion that…
Living through a flood led to mental health issues in about a quarter of people, a new study across four African countries shows. The logic then goes that if people can be protected against experiencing the trauma of a flood, their mental health will be better too. With extreme rainfall and storms set to hit…
Validation marks a major step toward a shared continental approach to secure, ethical and sovereign health data governance, ahead of finalisation and consideration through African Union policy processes. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 22 October 2026 – African Union (AU) Member States have validated the African Continental Health Data Governance Framework, paving the way for Africa’s first…
Conversations around health progress in Africa usually focus on lives saved. And rightly so. Across the continent, people are living longer than they did a generation ago. Advances in prevention, treatment and public health have reduced deaths from many major diseases and improved survival for millions. But there is another side to this success story…
Schools are often among the first places where emotional and behavioural difficulties become visible. Learners may start missing classes, withdrawing from friends or struggling academically. Schools are strategically positioned for mental health intervention because of their centrality in the lives of children and adolescents. They are an important entry point for mental health responsive action…
UNESCO is growing its environmental DNA, or eDNA, expedition programme. This ambitious and cost-effective project can give usable ocean data in a couple of weeks using a small number of seawater samples collected by citizen scientists. A fishing boat’s catch tells only part of the story of the waters around World Heritage sites. Species that…
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 21 October 2026 The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) will convene a high-level virtual meeting of African Ministers of Health on Wednesday, 28 October 2026, as the ongoing Ebola outbreak poses an escalating threat to health security across the continent. Five months into the response, the outbreak caused…
Bulawayo — An Ebola death last week in Kenya is highlighting the urgency of Africa’s public health emergency preparedness and how the continent’s governments are committing their national budgets to the health sector. The Kenya case is serving as a call to arms in the fight against Africa’s public health emergencies and how locally coordinated…
