Nigeria’s Swipha Achieves WHO Prequalification for Malaria Drug in Milestone for African Manufacturing

Nigerian pharmaceutical manufacturer Swipha has received prequalification from the World Health Organization (WHO) for their sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP), a key medication used to prevent malaria in pregnant women. This marks a major achievement in Africa’s fight against malaria, particularly in Nigeria, which bears the highest malaria burden globally. The company underwent a rigorous process to submit…

In Mozambique’s Zambezia province, mothers go the extra mile to get kids protected with malaria vaccines

Mozambique introduced the malaria vaccine in its worst-hit province on 5 August 2024. 15 August 2024 by Charles Mangwiro Isaura Viera arrived at the Sangariveira Health Unit, in Quelimane, coastal Mozambique, visibly exhausted after walking for four hours carrying her two-year-old son, the youngest of her four children. Having no transportation money, she knew she’d have…

Incorporating risk management in health facilities improves health outcomes while boosting financial efficiency

By Francis Edonyu and Benon Tumwine Health facilities, especially those that provide primary health care services to indigenous populations, operate in resource constrained and hard-to-reach-hard-to-stay settings. This begs the question of how such facilities are expected to meaningfully contribute to the ideals of universal health coverage and deliver quality health benefits and wellbeing to communities, affordably and in responsiveness…

Optimizing Private Wings in Public Health Facilities to Strengthen Uganda’s Healthcare System

By Francis Edonyu & Benon Tumwine Uganda’s health system operates a two-tier payment system in an attempt to bridge the funding gap for public facilities. This means that some public facilities are allowed to operate private wings at full or partial cost recovery. The government has fostered the growth of this system, acknowledging the challenges Ugandans face in…

Cross-Border Science Media Café on the spread of Mpox

Date: Tuesday, 13th August 2024 Venue: Virtual Time: 11:00 AM – 1 PM Nairobi EAT Participants Overview: The Science Café was well attended, with an average of 50 participants, including science journalists from Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and Latin America, public health specialists, and representatives from Kenya and Uganda Governments, WHO and UNICEF. Key Highlights:…

New Research Reveals Ongoing Challenges in Diagnosing and Managing Drug-Resistant TB in Six African Countries

New research shows the diagnosis and management of drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) remains a serious challenge in six African countries. An in-depth analysis of DR-TB data from Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Niger, Senegal, Togo between 2018 and 2022, led by The Union, found that the diagnostic capacity for multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) was “globally insufficient”. The study,…

Qure.ai Secures Indian Patent Marking Breakthrough in AI-Powered Lung Abnormality Detection

Qure.ai, a global leader in healthcare AI, has been awarded its 12th patent in India by the Indian Patent Office for “A system and method for detecting lung abnormalities in a medical image.” This milestone marks Qure.ai’s first patent involving a large language model (LLM), underscoring the company’s cutting-edge advancements in medical imaging and AI.…