WHO & Regionals [to 21 March 2015]
:: WHO calls on the world to “Gear up to End TB”
19 March 2013– As countries mark World Tuberculosis Day on March 24, WHO is calling for “global solidarity and action” to support a new 20-year strategy which aims to end the global tuberculosis epidemic. Recent years have seen tremendous progress in the fight against TB, with over 37 million lives saved, but much more needs to be done.
Read the news release on World Tuberculosis Day

:: Global Alert and Response (GAR): Disease Outbreak News (DONs)
– 20 March 2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – Saudi Arabia
– 17 March 2015 Typhoid fever – Uganda

:: The Weekly Epidemiological Record (WER) 20 March 2015, vol. 90, 12 (pp. 109–120) includes:
– Antigenic and genetic characteristics of zoonotic influenza viruses and development of candidate vaccine viruses for pandemic preparedness

:: WHO Highlights
Cholera coalition urges stepped-up support of water for Haiti
March 2015— On World Water Day 2015, the Regional Coalition for Water and Sanitation to Eliminate Cholera in Hispaniola is calling for stepped-up support from the international community to help Haiti and the Dominican Republic end the cholera epidemic on their shared island.

Comment on the Interim report of the Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity
March 2015 — The Interim Report of the Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity is now open for comments from relevant stakeholders from March to June 2015.

People’s health at the centre of new global blueprint to reduce disaster risks
March 2015 — Ten years since adopting the Hyogo Framework for Action shortly after the Indian Ocean Tsunami, government representatives have gathered in Sendai to negotiate a new framework for global action to reduce the risks of disasters.

Lassa fever
March 2015 — Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic illness that occurs in West Africa. It is difficult to distinguish from other viral haemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola virus disease, especially early in the course of the disease. Early supportive care with rehydration and symptomatic treatment improves survival. Read more in this updated fact sheet.

:: WHO Regional Offices
WHO African Region AFRODr Marie Puruehnce, Presidential Adviser for Health in Congo pays a courtesy call on Dr Matshidiso Moeti
19 March 2015

WHO Region of the Americas PAHO
:: Cholera coalition urges stepped-up support of water for Haiti (03/19/2015)

:: PAHO/WHO initiative seeks to reduce maternal deaths from hemorrhage in the Americas (03/18/2015)

:: PAHO/WHO urges food processors to reduce salt in children’s foods and cease advertising salty products to children (03/17/2015)

WHO South-East Asia Region SEARO
:: World Water Day 2015: Water and Sustainable Development
Every year, 22 March is observed as World Water Day to appreciate this precious resource and to recommit ourselves in preserving and sustaining water for current and future generations.
To recognize the transition from Millennium Development (MDG) to Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), the theme for 2015 is: ‘Water and Sustainable Development’.
RD’s message on World Water Day 2015

:: Scale up TB control initiatives to reach the missing one million cases
20 March 2015

WHO European Region EURO
:: Each day 1000 people fall sick with tuberculosis in the European Region 17-03-2015

WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region EMRO
:: WHO Regional Director reviews health situation in Iraq and sounds alarm on diminishing health response due to limited funding
Baghdad, Iraq, 16 March, 2015 – In his visit to Iraq, Dr Ala Alwan, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, has been reviewing the health needs of populations affected by the conflict and describes the situation as alarming with 5 million currently in need of health services. Of the US$ 314.2 million required by the health sector, only US$ 95.5 million has been received (30.4%), leaving a critical funding gap of US$ 218.7 million. WHO urges the international donor community to act immediately to support the work of WHO and health partners in Iraq.

Millions of Afghan children reached in national polio immunization drive
18 March 2015

Tobacco use declining but major intensification efforts needed in reduction and control efforts
18 March 2015

WHO recognizes H.H. Sheikh Al Qasimi for leadership in tobacco control
18 March 2015

WHO Western Pacific Region
:: WHO responds to health needs caused by Cyclone Pam 15 March 2015