Gaza’s polio vaccination campaign in north nears 90 per cent target
Welcome news from UN humanitarians in Gaza who’ve reached nearly nine in 10 children in the north of the war-ravaged enclave who urgently need polio shots.
This is despite major and ongoing access challenges, mass displacement and bombardment by the Israeli military.
With more on the vaccination campaign that began at the weekend, here’s WHO Representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Dr. Rik Peeperkorn:
“Over 105,000 children – actually 105,261 under 10 years – have been vaccinated and almost 84,000 provided vitamin A. That’s actually 88 per cent of the target. I think it’s an exceptional achievement.”
The campaign which has mostly come to an end in Gaza involved the WHO, the UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF and partners.
Dr Peeperkorn warned that conditions in the north remain dire and that families continue to live in makeshift shelters such as playgrounds. “We absolutely need to improve …conditions,” he said, adding that when the winter rains start, conditions will become “horrific”.
The WHO medic also called for assistance and access to northern Gaza where only two hospitals are barely able to stay open: Kamal Adwan and Al-Awda. “It’s vital that these hospitals remain functional,” he said.
More than two billion people in cities face 0.5C rise warns UN
More than two billion people living in cities face a temperature rise of “at least half a degree Celsius” by 2040, leading UN urban development experts said on Tuesday.
In a new report on metropolitan expansion, UN Habitat linked this urban temperature rise to the “steady attrition of green space” in many towns and cities.
Data from UN-Habitat’s World Cities report published at the World Urban Forum taking place in Cairo indicated that the average share of undeveloped green space in built-up areas worldwide dropped from 19.5 per cent in 1990 to barely 14 per cent in 2020.
The UN agency noted that some efforts to create parks in towns and cities have had the unwanted consequence of displacing low-income households or driving up property values, which highlights the need for sustainable solutions that benefit everyone.
UN Habitat also insisted that climate action in cities still falls far short of where it should be “to match the scale and intensity of the challenges cities face” from global warming and weather-related disasters.
Cities need an estimated $4.5-5.4 trillion per year to build and maintain climate-resilient systems, the UN agency said, but current financing stands at just $831 billion.
WHO publishes first list of ‘top pathogens’ requiring new vaccines
Medical news now, and an urgent appeal from the UN World Health Organization (WHO) to big pharma companies to develop vaccines to target neglected pathogens that impact vulnerable communities.
A total of 17 diseases caused by bacteria, viruses and parasites could be treated far more successfully with the right vaccines, the WHO said.
These include Group A streptococcus bacteria that cause skin, soft tissue and respiratory tract infections, and Klebsiella pneumoniae bacteria, which are commonly found in our intestines, but can develop into superbugs.
These two pathogens are top disease control priorities in all regions, WHO said, in addition to HIV, malaria and tuberculosis – which together cause nearly 2.5 million deaths every year.
Dr Kate O’Brien, WHO’s Director of Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals, said that “too often, global decisions on new vaccines have been solely driven by return on investment, rather than by the number of lives that could be saved”.
The UN health agency initiative marks the first global effort to prioritize how dangerous endemic pathogens are, based on their regional and global impact.
Daniel Johnson, UN News
Music composed and produced by Joachim Harris. All rights reserved
Source of original article: United Nations (news.un.org). Photo credit: UN. The content of this article does not necessarily reflect the views or opinion of Global Diaspora News (www.globaldiasporanews.com).
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