On 22 April 2024, H.E. Mr. Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, along with H.E. Mr. Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, and heads and officers of the Department of South Asian, Middle East and African Affairs, welcomed the African Ambassadors’ Group from 6 countries, namely (1) H.E. Mr. Lindsay Kimwole Kiptiness, Ambassador of the Republic of Kenya and Dean the African Ambassadors’ Group (2) H.E. Mr. Abderrahim Rahhaly, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco, (3) H.E. Mr. Darkey Ephraim Africa, Ambassador of the Republic of South Africa, (4) H.E. Mrs. Hala Youssef Ahmed Ragab, Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt, (5) H.E. Mrs. Constance Chemwayi, Ambassador of the Republic of Zimbabwe with residence in Kuala Lumpur, and (6) Mr. Mohammed Idris Haidra , Chargé d’affaires a.i., Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

On this occasion, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs gave an overview of Thailand’s new proactive foreign policy to Africa, especially the Thailand-Africa Initiative (TAI), which comprises 4 pillars of cooperation: political cooperation, development cooperation, economic cooperation and global strategic cooperation. The African Ambassadors pleasantly accepted and fully supported this Initiative. Moreover, both sides agreed to cooperate on economic and technical development under the framework of South-South Cooperation, aiming at collectively achieving international peace, security and sustainable development in Africa and beyond.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand.

More than 400 people embarked on the walk the talk for health and health outreach activity to climax the commemoration of the 2024 World Health Day organized by World Health Organization (WHO) in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health.

The 8km walk in Dar es Salaam and Dodoma with a health outreach programme for the elderly in Zanzibar on the theme “My Health, My Right”, did not only celebrate advances in public health but also highlighted present and future challenges calling for joint work and the strengthening of partnerships to improve the health of the Tanzanian population. 

The Guest of Honour for the walk in Dar es Salaam, the Minister of Health, Hon Ummy Mwalimu, praised WHO for leading with works expecially curating the walk the talk challenge to encourage citizens to prioritize their physical health further encouraging more of this unified walks.

“If we want to achieve the health for all agenda, it must start with us. Let us keep this momentum for all our interventions. It is imperative that we work together and united to guarantee the basic human rights of health and well-being, dignity, and a good quality of life for everyone”.

WHO took the opportunity to reiterate its ongoing commitment to collaborate closely with the government and its partners to tackle the main challenges still affecting the national health system. This includes initiatives such as repositioning primary health care and strengthening community health, with the aim of ensuring that everyone has access to the best possible level of health and well-being.

Echoing these sentiments, Dr Charles Sagoe-Moses highlighted the significance of community engagement in advancing public health goals. “Events such as today’s health walk serve as a powerful reminder of the role each individual plays in shaping the health landscape. By coming together, we not only celebrate our WHO’s achievements but also inspire positive change for the future,” he expressed.

He stated that “WHO greatly appreciates the opportunity to collaborate with Tanzania on events like Walk the Talk. In a world where the right to health is constantly challenged, events like this are potent reminders that together, we can make the right to health a reality for everyone. 

The walk gathered people from all sectors including, implementing partners, policer service, students, ministries, and UN staff with their families.

“I travelled from Dodoma just to be part of this walk the talk in Dar es Salam with the Minister. Thank you WHO, for this huge successful walk. We learned, we connected and as young people, we got the opportunity to grow, both mentally and having our health fit”, expressed, Dagatha Asun, founder for Pharma organization.

The Walk the talk climaxed a compound of activities in commemoration of the World Health Day. These activities included the X space with experts and young people to digest the theme of the day, a round table discussion on health journalist programme and an opinion piece authored by the WR.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of WHO Regional Office for Africa.

The Ministry of Health of the United Republic of Tanzania, in partnership with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi), UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO), today launched the national multi-age cohort (MAC) vaccination campaign against the human papillomavirus (HPV) – the leading cause of cervical cancer. The campaign, which is targeting over 5 million girls aged 9–14 years, will run from Monday, 22 April, to Friday, 26 April 2024.

While cervical cancer remains a significant cause of death among women in Tanzania, with more than 10,800 cases and 6,800 deaths in 2022 alone, it is vaccine preventable. The HPV vaccine is safe and highly effective in preventing infections. During the campaign, eligible girls will have the opportunity to receive a single dose of the HPV vaccine at no cost.

Efforts to increase access to the HPV vaccine across Tanzania have made substantial progress. In 2018, the two-dose vaccine was integrated into the national routine immunization programme for 14-year-old girls, demonstrating the government’s commitment to safeguarding the health and well-being of future generations.

To date, coverage of the first dose of the HPV vaccine has reached 79%, and the second dose is at 60%. Combined efforts are needed to ensure every girl in Tanzania receives crucial protection against this deadly yet preventable disease. Following the MAC campaign, the vaccine will continue to be provided routinely as a single dose to nine-year-old girls. It will go a long way towards increasing girls’ protection.

Tanzania’s progress in administering the HPV vaccine is a critical part of a broader global initiative supported by the Vaccine Alliance, which has committed additional funding and resources towards reaching 86 million girls worldwide with the HPV vaccine by 2025.

The campaign will leverage African Vaccination Week, synchronized with World Immunization Week (24 to 30 April), during which routine childhood vaccinations along with health education will be provided for girls in schools, health facilities and community centres countrywide.

Throughout this week, the Ministry of Health, Gavi, UNICEF and WHO are urging communities to encourage girls to get vaccinated against cervical cancer and to aim for a future where no girl is burdened by this disease. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO).

The Safety of Rwanda bill is cruel and profoundly dangerous. MSF UK opposes the principle of this approach on medical, ethical and humanitarian grounds.

The UK government’s plan to forcibly and permanently expel people seeking safety in the UK – including children and survivors of torture and trafficking to Rwanda, is inhumane. It also undermines the letter and the spirit of the Refugee Convention and other international and domestic obligations, setting a worrying precedent for other countries to follow.

The passing of the ‘Safety of Rwanda bill’ marks another dark chapter in the UK’s brutal approach to migration, which is rooted in policies of deterring, externalising and punishing people for seeking protection in the UK. Such approaches are well documented to cause significant medical and humanitarian harm and ultimately costs lives.

MSF has seen first-hand the devastating medical and humanitarian consequences of a similar disastrous ‘offshoring’ policies implemented by the Australian Government, where almost two thirds of our patients forcibly expelled to Nauru island suffered from suicidal ideation and self-harm, including amongst children as young as nine years old. There, our medical teams witnessed some of the worst mental health suffering in our organisation’s 50-year history.

Now, we are horrified that history is repeating itself.

We are also deeply concerned that the Rwanda bill ​ may trigger a mental health crisis amongst the tens of thousands of people who are at risk of being forcibly removed to Rwanda, including our patients and those being held in the mass containment site at RAF Wethersfield in Essex.

In November 2023 MSF UK, in partnership with Doctors of the World UK, launched a mobile clinic providing primary healthcare to the men living on the site, outside the main gates of Wethersfield due to concerns over unresolved and unmet health needs. Our medical consultations reveal that our patients – many of whom have had traumatic journeys to the UK – are showing signs of serious mental distress, including anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, self-harm and suicidal ideation, with many people telling us the containment site is contributing to their poor mental health.

This dire mental health situation is a particular concern and The Safety of Rwanda bill will only exacerbate this.

The UK government must immediately abandon this cruel and abhorrent approach. Instead, it should focus on establishing safe routes to the UK and on creating a functioning, fair and efficient asylum system, which respects the health and dignity of people seeking safety in the UK.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Médecins sans frontières (MSF).