EQUINET Information sheet on COVID-19

EQUINET Information sheet on COVID-19

"This brief summarises and provides links to official, scientific and other resources to support an understanding of and individual to regional level responses to the epidemic of ‘novel coronavirus’, also known as COVID-19.On January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) and on March 11 2020 it declared it a pandemic. The International Health Regulations (IHR) 2005 term a PHEIC an extraordinary eventthat constitutes “a risk to other States through the international spread of disease”, requiringa coordinated international response."

Schnell lernen - und hoffen

Schnell lernen - und hoffen

"Auf dem afrikanischen Kontinent gibt es immer mehr Corona-Infizierte. Experten fürchten, ein Ausbruch wie in Europa, werde die fragilen Gesundheitssysteme überlasten - mit schlimmen Folgen." (Foto: Protecting shared Microphones/ MONUSCO/ Radio Okapi/flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0)

What the West Can Learn From Africa’s Ebola Response

What the West Can Learn From Africa’s Ebola Response

"A poor country succeeded in fighting off Ebola. Wealthier countries should replicate Liberia’s strategy in combating the coronavirus. (...) Those first days of the 2014 Ebola outbreak and Liberia’s response from that point on can offer important lessons to European and North American governments in light of the World Health Organization’s announcement that the new coronavirus is now a pandemic—and the evidence in rising caseloads from Madrid to London to New York." (Photo: USAID U.S. Agency for International Development/flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0)

Wie schützt man Flüchtlingslager vor Coronaviren?

Wie schützt man Flüchtlingslager vor Coronaviren?

"Humanitäre Organisationen bereiten sich auf einen Ausbruch der Epidemie in Idlib oder auf Lesbos vor. Viele notwendige Massnahmen lassen sich kaum umsetzen. Ein Schreckensszenario könnte in den kommenden Tagen zur Gewissheit werden: der Ausbruch der Corona-Epidemie in der syrischen Region Idlib." (Foto: Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung/flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0)

Yves Daccord: «Cette pandémie nous pousse à penser l’impensable»

Yves Daccord: «Cette pandémie nous pousse à penser l’impensable»

"Le directeur général du CICR quitte ses fonctions en pleine tempête sanitaire mondiale. Mais si Yves Daccord s’inquiète des effets immédiats de la maladie, il redoute encore plus les crises économiques et politiques qu’elle entraînera." (Photo: swissnex San Francisco/flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0)

The Economic Impact of COVID-19 in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

The Economic Impact of COVID-19 in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

"As travelers cancel flights, businesses ask workers to stay home, and stocks fall, a global health crisis becomes a global economic crisis. In any health crisis, our first concern is (and should be) with the health of those affected. More than 4,000 people have died worldwide and more than 113,000 cases have been confirmed in over 110 countries. But unfortunately, the economic impacts also have dramatic effects on the wellbeing of families and communities. For vulnerable families, lost income due to an outbreak can translate to spikes in poverty, missed meals for children, and reduced access to healthcare far beyond COVID-19. While the spread in the United States and Europe absorbs much of the media coverage, confirmed cases from Bangladesh to Brazil, from Cameroon to Costa Rica, and in many other low- and middle-income countries mean that many of the economic impacts may affect the world’s most vulnerable populations." (Photo: Trade for Development/flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

CORONAVIRUS Dans le Sud, le pire est à venir. Quelle solidarité du Nord?

CORONAVIRUS Dans le Sud, le pire est à venir. Quelle solidarité du Nord?

"Dans les pays en développement, le pire sur le front du coronavirus reste à venir. Mais déjà aujourd’hui les mesures de confinement prises par divers gouvernements du Sud, notamment en Afrique, ont un impact dévastateur sur la vie et l’économie de pays particulièrement vulnérables. En début de semaine, l’ONU a lancé un cri d’alarme en demandant que les Etats du Nord débloquent 2500 milliards de dollars d‘aide en faveur du Sud."

Bearing the brunt of covid-19: older people in low and middle income countries

Bearing the brunt of covid-19: older people in low and middle income countries

"A global expert group on older people might be useful: The global response to covid-19 has been described as being “too little, too late.” National and international efforts are now gathering pace. Those involved in these efforts can draw on a rapidly growing body of research, much summarised in regularly updated guidelines published by national and international authorities, covering the latest information on the virus, its mode of transmission, its spread, and the susceptibility of different groups within the population. Although many aspects of this new infection remain uncertain, one thing is already clear. The risk of dying from covid-19 increases with age, and most of the deaths observed are in people older than 60, especially those with chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease." (Photo: MMS)

Contextualizing COVID-19 risk communication and community engagement in sub-Saharan Africa for effective epidemic control: Fighting the “Infodemic”

Contextualizing COVID-19 risk communication and community engagement in sub-Saharan Africa for effective epidemic control: Fighting the “Infodemic”

"WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus: “We’re not just fighting an epidemic; we’re fighting an infodemic. Fake news spreads faster and more easily than this virus, and is just as dangerous. ” (Munich Security Conference on Feb 15, 2020). (...) In the face of limited resources and weak health systems, the COVID-19 pandemic presented sub-Saharan Africa with new challenges: the urgent need for diagnostics, care and treatment for SARS-CoV-2 infected patients, the increased burden on health systems and collapsing economies. (...) To win this virus war and impending social disruption, there is a need for effective risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) – an essential component of health emergency and response activities." (Photo: Prachatai/flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Wenn New York überfordert ist, was passiert dann in Nairobi?

Wenn New York überfordert ist, was passiert dann in Nairobi?

Utilisé dans les pages listant des éléments et les pages de résultats de recherche. "In Afrika wächst die Sorge vor einer ungebremsten Ausbreitung des Virus. Denn die Ärmsten können ihm kaum entfliehen. (...) Ärzte und Pflegekräfte nähern sich Kranken nur in Schutzanzügen, vor den Spitälern reiht sich Sarg an Sarg, das Gesundheitssystem steht am Rande des Kollaps: die Schreckensbilder der Ebola-Epidemie in Westafrika sind uns Europäern derzeit auf schauerliche Weise präsent. Nach konservativen Schätzungen der WHO starben von 2014 bis 2016 über 11'000 Menschen an der Infektionskrankheit. Die Dunkelziffer dürfte weit höher sein." (Foto: MMS)

The World Bank’s 2017 pandemic response fund isn’t working

The World Bank’s 2017 pandemic response fund isn’t working

"How do the world’s poorest nations tackle a global health crisis like the current novel coronavirus outbreak? After the 2014 Ebola epidemic in West Africa, the World Bank launched the Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) — an insurance-based mechanism to raise money for pandemic responses in low-income countries through “catastrophe bonds” and derivatives. The coronavirus pandemic is exactly the situation for which the PEF was designed. Most of the PEF-eligible countries are reporting cases of covid-19 (the disease caused by this coronavirus) and urgently require billions of dollars to scale up their public health response. So far, the PEF has yet to pay out a single dollar. Here’s what happened and why." (Photo: World Bank Photo Collection/flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Briefing: Five ideas on how to ease the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns in Kenya

Briefing: Five ideas on how to ease the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns in Kenya

"NAIROBI - Africa was one of the last regions to register a confirmed coronavirus case, but COVID-19 is now spreading fast. There have so far been more than 9,400 confirmed cases in 52 countries, with no sign yet of a slow down. Governments initially responded with travel bans and flight restrictions. As coronavirus cases have climbed, most African countries have implemented social distancing measures – including lockdowns and curfews – to try and contain the secondary spread within communities. But in cities like Nairobi, two-thirds of the 4.4 million people are crammed into informal settlements that lack basic services, and entire families can live in a single room." (Photo: Ben Cappellacci/flickr, CC BY 2.0)

COVID-19 cases top 10 000 in Africa

COVID-19 cases top 10 000 in Africa

Brazzaville/ Cairo, 7 April 2020 – The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa has risen to more than 10 000 and caused more than 500 deaths. While the virus was slow to reach the continent compared to other parts of the world, infection has grown exponentially in recent weeks and continues to spread. Reaching the continent through travellers returning from hotspots in Asia, Europe and the United States, Africa’s first COVID-19 case was recorded in Egypt on 14 February. Since then a total of 52 countries have reported cases. Initially, mainly confined to capital cities, a significant number of countries in Africa are now reporting cases in multiple provinces. (Photo: UN Geneva/flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Entre la présence du virus et la banque néolibérale

Entre la présence du virus et la banque néolibérale

Ce sont principalement des touristes européens, puis des voyageurs venus des États-Unis, qui ont apporté le coronavirus dans cette région, où l'épidémie à la fin du mois de mars 2020 en est encore largement à ses débuts. Des systèmes de santé fragiles et partiellement privatisés dans des pays pour la plupart très endettés, dont une grande partie de la population n'a pas d'emploi formel et dont les systèmes de sécurité sociale sont faibles, sont de mauvais augure pour les mois à venir. (Leon Nicaragua. Photo: Massimo Pedrazzini)

Covid-19 and sub-Saharan Africa’s critical care infrastructure

Covid-19 and sub-Saharan Africa’s critical care infrastructure

"The covid-19 pandemic has undoubtedly challenged our previously held assumptions about global disease epidemiology. Classic public health teaching promulgates the theory of a prevailing epidemiologic transition—one in which the burden of disease morphs from predominantly infectious causes to non-communicable causes as countries industrialize. That theory has now been turned on its head as public health campaigns in industrialized countries promote basic hygiene, while restrictive lockdowns upend regular life. For many, these developments feel like regression to a hitherto forgotten era, with industrialized nations now living the contemporary experience of many in developing countries." (Photo: 217 Cuban Health Specialists arriving in South Africa to curb the spread of COVID-19/GovernmentZA/flickr, CC BY-ND 2.0)

Mobilization for and in Africa is certainly insufficient

Mobilization for and in Africa is certainly insufficient

"The ​Geneva Health Forum​, created in 2006 in Geneva, was forced to postpone its eighth annual conference, from March to 16-18 November due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But that has not prevented the Forum’s leadership, including GHF Director, Dr Eric Comte, from responding to the unprecedented challenge created by the crisis. From a small and modest gathering of booths and stands, the ​Geneva Health Forum has grown into an international event with a strong array of scientific sessions. ​Geneva Solutions interviewed Comte to hear about the role GHF is playing in the present emergency, and his views gleaned from years in epidemic management." (Photo: DFID - UK Department for International Development/flickr, CC BY 2.0)

En Afrique, la catastrophe sanitaire annoncée n’a pas encore eu lieu

En Afrique, la catastrophe sanitaire annoncée n’a pas encore eu lieu

"Les pays africains sont dans l’ensemble peu touchés par le Covid-19. La jeunesse de la population et le climat freinent sans doute la transmission du coronavirus mais l’évolution de la pandémie est incertaine, d’autant que le confinement de la population est intenable." (Photo: Social Distancing in the Market/World Bank Photo Collection/flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)