Mohammad Rafique (right) and other refugee children gathered at the Rohingya market in Kutupalong camp to sell vegetables he brought earlier from a local market in this photo dated Mar. 11, 2020. This was two weeks before Bangladesh went into a nationwide lockdown in an attempt to contain the spread of the coronavirus. Credit: Rafiqul Islam/IPS
Nine-year-old Mohammad Rafique used to collect vegetables from Kutupalong Bazaar and sell them at a market inside Kutupalong camp, a camp of some 600,000 Rohingyas, in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar.
But nowadays he has to stay home with his parents inside their makeshift home built on the slopes of a hill in the sprawlin…
A young boy in Pakistan receives an oral polio vaccine (OPV). Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS
AMSTERDAM, May 6 2020 (IPS) – Interruptions to vaccination programmes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic could result in new waves of measles or polio outbreaks, health experts warn.
A growing number of one-off immunisation campaigns and national routine vaccine introductions are being delayed amid social distancing and other measures to curb the spread of SARS-CoV-2, leaving millions unprotected.
With both preventive campaigns and routine immunisations impacted, “we’ll have an increasing number of children who will become susceptible to vaccine-preventable diseas…
Ambassador Lois M Young, is Belize’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations and Chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS).
NEW YORK, Jul 7 2020 (IPS) – Our world is transfixed by the great human toll and economic impact of the worst global pandemic in a century. For the 65 million inhabitants of small island developing states (SIDS), the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is reminiscent of the worst forms of extreme weather events that SIDS contend with annually. Such events cost lives, undermine our hard-earned development gains, and hamper the aspirations and quality of life of our people. Our governments are routinely compelled to shift alre…
Children need diverse microbiomes in their environment to develop healthy immune systems. Credit: Josh Calabrese on Unsplash.
Aug 5 2020 (IPS) – By 2050, is expected to live in towns and cities. Urban living brings many benefits, but city dwellers worldwide are seeing a in noncommunicable health problems, such as asthma and inflammatory bowel disease.
Some scientists now think this is linked to – the ongoing …
Today when children are under serious threat from Covid-19, the 30th anniversary of the Children’s Summit is a highly appropriate time for countries to renew and update the vows they made then. Credit: Manipadma Jena/IPS
BRIGHTON, United Kingdom, Sep 28 2020 (IPS) – On the eve of the UN s 75th anniversary, Antonio Guterres, the UN’s Secretary-General has declared that the coronavirus pandemic is the world s top security threat. He has called for action for greater international co-operation in controlling outbreaks and developing an affordable vaccine, available to all. Such action is needed and possible -even in the absence of a large gathering of world leaders in Ne…
We never imagined that we would witness food insecurity being an issue in developed countries such as the US. Credit: Stephen Leahy/IPS.
URBANA, Illinois / ABUJA, Dec 17 2020 (IPS) – Food insecurity across the U.S. continues to be on the rise because of the effects of COVID-19. According to Feeding America, .
We both grew up in countries referred to as “developing countries,” Ifeanyi in Nigeria and Esther in Kenya. At the time, we never imagined that we would witness food insecurity being an issue in developed countries such as the U.S. like we are now. As thought leaders in global health and food security, we are compelled to amplify this inequity in the…
The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the challenges the leprosy-affected community face: deep and widespread stigma, discrimination, misinformation, unfounded fear, besides living with the disease itself. IPS senior correspondent STELLA PAUL looks at the challenges they face ahead of World Leprosy Day on Jan. 31
The following opinion piece is part of series to mark the upcoming International Women’s Day, March 8.
NEW DELHI, India, Mar 6 2021 (IPS) – Power is an intriguing concept and it means different things to different people. In simple words, power is the ability to influence the behavior of others to get what you want. Power distribution is usually visible in most societies when there is a clear and obvious division between the roles of the men and expectations from women. One can’t talk about power without talking about patriarchy in which men always hold the power and women are largely excluded from it. Women are almost always taught power and ambition are two dirty words, and should not be linked to their personalities.
In 2020, as the world tried to survive the global…
A 14th century painting depicts two leprosy patients denied entrance to town. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
May 31 2021 – The 74th World Health Assembly (WHA) takes place from May 24 to June 1. This year s gathering is likely to be dominated by Covid-19, but here I want to talk about a different disease—leprosy—and a resolution that was adopted at the WHA exactly 30 years ago.
This resolution called for the elimination of leprosy as a public health problem at the global level by the year 2000, with elimination defined as a prevalence rate of less than 1 case per 10,000 population. It was a landmark resolution for the time.
Leprosy, also known as H…
Menstrual health and hygiene management (MHHM) must be integrated into the response to emergencies. | Picture courtesy: WaterAid India/Altaf Ahmed
Jul 6 2021 (IPS) – Over the last few years, the world has witnessed accelerated action to achieve the (SDGs), especially on gender equality and women’s empowerment. This has also led to significant interest in menstrual health and hygiene management (MHHM) as a critical factor in girls’ education and women’s participation in many spheres of life.
In India, this has led to the introduction of evidence-…