global health

Notwithstanding all measures put in place, and considering the alarming rate of infection of the coronavirus, the inevitable eventually happened. On 12 March 2020, Ghana Health Service under the Ministry of Health confirmed the first two COVID-19 cases in the country. The cases have since been rising daily with the COVID-19 story yet to end. To this point, Ghana has recorded 46,222 cases of COVID-19 cases with 45,417 recoveries and 299 deaths.

At least 83 children have been killed in the northern province of Ituri in the Democratic Republic of Congo between April and July, reports Save the Children.

COVID-19 offers mankind a blank page for a new beginning. The question, however, is are we prepared for a fresh start?

Epidemics like Ebola cause a lot of deaths, displacements, and despair and they aren’t desirable for sure; but on a positive side, they also show us the ugly side of corporate capitalism and make it very clear who genuinely cares about the world and who doesn’t.

Efforts to stem the impact of COVID-19 in low to middle-income countries could be creating a health time bomb in their slum communities by deepening existing inequalities, according to an international team of health researchers led by the University of Warwick.

The Duterte administration has assigned former military generals to deal with Covid-19 and has sent police Special Forces to contain communities.

The Ministry of Health in Malawi has developed a radio drama serial to help tackle public health problems and promote better behaviour. Named Moyo ndi Mpamba!, the ‘edutainment’ radio drama programme combines the power of entertainment with education to address key issues of malaria, family and maternal planning, neonatal and child health, HIV and AIDS, water and sanitation.

While this pandemic may have created new forms of exclusion, strategies and tools exist to address health promotion, whilst continuing to communicate for peace in conflict-affected contexts. The design of an integrated peacebuilding and technical health response, which is sensitive to individual conflicts’ dynamics and keeps in mind communication challenges such as misinformation, mistrust and reduced interpersonal contact, is crucial.

The Rohingya refugees have suffered problems related to shelter, food, safety, and healthcare from the very beginning, and now the COVID-19 pandemic has further deteriorated their situation.

It is also important that Nepal's central as well as provincial governments extend support, both financial and moral, to pandemic-affected Nepali citizens, especially to the foreign returnees, to capitalize on their skills and expertise which they have gained from overseas employment.