More poor nations to get vaccine funds for children

Source: Reuters

The GAVI international immunizations group said on Tuesday it had agreed to more than 50 new deals to fund potentially life-saving vaccines for children in 37 developing countries.

Vaccine campaign to target deadly childhood diarrhoea

Source: Nature

Every year, more than one million children under the age of five die as a result of diarrhoea. It is the second-biggest killer in this age group, after pneumonia, and 40% of diarrhoea deaths are caused by rotavirus. That horrific toll could soon fall, thanks to the first major roll-out of rotavirus vaccines in Africa, where half of rotavirus deaths occur. The programme was unveiled this week by the GAVI Alliance.

Gates-Backed Alliance To Prevent Pneumonia, Diarrhea In Children

Source: Forbes

Children in more than a dozen developing countries will receive vaccines to prevent diarrhea and deadly infections of the bloodstream and brain, an alliance of governments and private donors created 12 years ago by a gift from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced this morning. 

Vaccines enjoy a healthy return

Source: NewScientist

The increasing demand for vaccines in developing countries is partly due to greater prosperity in the growing economies of China and India but also because vaccination is being vigorously promoted by various organisations as a route to economic development. The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), which campaigns for greater access to vaccines in developing countries, has created a booming market for vaccines in developing nations partly by persuading governments to pool resources and make advance purchase commitments.  

Malaria vaccine trial raises hope

Source: BBC News

Researchers are to expand a clinical trial of a new malaria vaccine after promising results in a preliminary study in Burkina Faso. The trial was designed to test safety, but researchers found that vaccinated children had high levels of protection. 

Busan conference offers chance to tackle aid effectiveness

Source: The Guardian | Poverty Matters Blog

The time is right for a bold attempt to draw all countries together behind clear principles on aid, which could mean giving the OECD and UN a dual role in enforcing them.

UN Foundation Unveils Shot@Life Campaign

Source: United Nations Foundation

The United Nations Foundation today revealed Shot@Life, a new campaign to expand access to life-saving vaccines for children in developing countries. A national grassroots movement, Shot@Life will educate, connect and empower Americans to champion vaccines as one of the most cost-effective ways to save children'slives around the world. 

In Kenyan camps, vaccine protects Somali refugee children from killer pneumonia

Source: UNICEF

About six months ago, Kenya was one of the first countries in Africa to introduce the pneumococcal vaccine, and children now have access to this life-saving intervention through routine immunization in the Dadaab refugee camps in the north-east of the country. 

Child mortality under 8 million in 2010 — UNICEF/WHO report

Source: Reliefweb

The number of children under five years of age dying each year declined from more than 12 million in 1990 to 7.6 million in 2010, UNICEF and the World Health Organization said today, releasing the latest estimates on worldwide child mortality.

Anniversary of Pope Benedict’s Visit to Britain

Source: UK Government

For the British government, the answer is clear. We have become ever closer in our co-operation in international development issues, as witnessed by the presence of the Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Mennini, at the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation pledging event hosted by the Prime Minister in June, and by DFID Secretary of State Andrew Mitchell's s visit to the Holy See in May. 

'Contagion' is part reality, part fantasy, totally possible

Source: CNN

Steven Soderbergh's movie "Contagion," which opened in theaters Friday, speaks to globalization in an era when risk is shared by the entire planet, but benefits remain prioritized to exclusive, usually wealthy populations. Among the players in the multilateral health picture only GAVI, the alliance responsible for child vaccinations, is financially stable and has vibrant leadership. Most other global health entities are struggling, both financially and politically.

Interview of Dr Seth Berkley, GAVI's new Chief Executive Officer

Source: Geneva International Cooperation

Dr Seth Berkley, GAVI's third Chief Executive Officer, dedicated his career to fighting infectious diseases. After medical studies at Harvard, he worked for several health organisations before founding and directing IAVI (International AIDS Vaccine Initiative) for more than a decade. 

Global Action on Non-Communicable Diseases

Source: Council on Foreign Relations

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) were once considered to be primarily epidemics of the developed world. But data shows that out of the thirty-six million deaths in 2008 related to chronic ailments like cancer and cardiovascular disease, 80 percent occurred in the developing world. 

Vaccinations in 72 poorest countries could avert 6.4 million deaths

Source: The JHU Gazette

By scaling up childhood vaccinations in 72 of the world's poorest countries, an estimated 6.4 million deaths could be averted between 2011 and 2020, with acorresponding economic value of between $151 billion and $231 billion, according to two new studies by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health investigators published in the June issue of Health Affairs. 

Managing better for results, not just measuring them better: lessons on complexity for the results agenda

Source: Overseas Development Institute

Recent reforms at DFID, USAID and elsewhere attempt to improve the quality of aid by stressing a more robust focus on results. So far, this has largely translated into a more rigorous measurement of impact, tying impact assessments to existing systems that shape implementation.

Study shows fewer than three vaccine shots prevents cervical cancer

Source: The Guardian | Global Health blog

New discovery is important news for women in poor countries, where vaccination against HPV, which can trigger cervical cancer, is a long, expensive process.

Busan is in the air: GAVI gets in front

Source: Center for Global Development | Blog

One of the good things about a big international meeting is that agencies become motivated to deliver on commitments made at earlier big international meetings. As aid-world gears up for the OECD aid effectiveness meeting in Busan in November, agencies are checking their compliance with recommendations from earlier meetings, which include improving accountability, defining measures and standards of performance, and monitoring and evaluating implementation.

Want to make aid more effective? Bring in the private sector

Source: The Guardian

By collaborating with companies, donors will see their aid have a much bigger impact and genuinely contribute to pro-poor growth. true The Guardian Want to make aid more effective? Bring in the private sector.

NCDs in the Developing World: Looking for Solutions

Source: Global Health Magazine

Diagnosing and treating non-communicable diseases (NCDs) can be a complicated and expensive proposition. Trying to do so in a low resource setting with poor health infrastructure and a dearth of doctors, particularly specialists, makes it that much more difficult.