Junk and processed Foods Driving Non-Communicable Diseases in Zimbabwe’s Young People

By Michael Gwarisa Zimbabwe is experiencing a surge in Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) linked to poor lifestyles and consumption of unhealthy diets, the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) has warned. Recent data from the annual Obesity Atlas shows that 2.9 million Zimbabwean children will be having high Body Mass Index (BMI) by year 2035 and the number of children who had high BMI in 2020 was 1,155,173. This according to the report will likely trigger an increase in stroke related health complications, diabetes linked to BMI among other conditions.…

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OPHID Hosts Workshop To Address Healthcare Infodemic in Zimbabwe

By Michael Gwarisa in Kadoma In a bid to capacitate health communicators from the government, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), local authorities and health media, the Organisation for Public Health Interventions and Development (OPHID), is holding a three-day Infodemic Management capacity-building workshop. The infodemic management workshop is happening in Kadoma in collaboration with Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) and project partner organisations, JFKapnek, and ZNNP+ – with technical support from USAID. An infodemic by definition is an excessive amount of information about a problem that is typically unreliable, spreads rapidly,…

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The reality behind the ‘Chinese debt trap’ myth in Africa

By Hannah Ryde For years, there have been sweeping concerns of African countries falling “victim” to a Chinese “debt trap” – whereby Chinese lenders provide unsustainable loans to African countries. Such narratives are problematic, as African countries are portrayed as inferior or incompetent in their engagement with Chinese creditors, while their Chinese counterparts are presented as predatory in their engagement with Africa. Indeed, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we witnessed these narratives emerging once again, despite vast amounts of data debunking this theory. This narrative is also extremely harmful, as it…

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Monkeypox: A Global Health Threat – who sounds the Alarm?

By Dr. Amit Singh Monkeypox is a viral disease of animal origin. It occurs primarily in tropical rainforest areas of Central and West Africa and is occasionally exported to other regions.  Common symptoms of mpox include a rash which may last for 2–4 weeks. This may start with, or be followed by, fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen glands (lymph nodes). The rash looks like blisters or sores, and can affect the face, palms of the hands, soles of the feet, groin, genital and/or anal regions.…

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#BREAKING: Tanzania’s Ndungile Lands WHO Afro Director Job

By Staff Reporter Member of Parliament and Tanzania’s Medical Doctor, Dr Faustine Ndugulile has been elected the new Regional Director for Africa at the World Health Organization (WHO). He takes over from Dr Matshidiso Moeti, from Botswana, first woman to be elected to the position who had steered the ship for 10 years since 2015. Ndugulile is a Medical Doctor who specialized in Public Health and Medical Microbiology. Dr. Ndugulile joined politics in 2010 and he has been a Member of Parliament for Kigamboni Constituency in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania…

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Unpaid Care Work Widens Economic Gap For Women In Zimbabwe- Report

Musa Hove Safaids hands over SOF Report to Minister Mutsvangwa

By Ntokozo Gudu A new report, the State of The Father Report shows that men in Zimbabwe participate in more financially rewarding work while women struggle with the burden of unpaid work. The report was launched in Harare by SAfAIDS in partnership with ADA partners, Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises (MWACSMED) and Sonke Gender Justice in a bid to improve their understanding on the state of fathers towards unpaid care work project. Findings from the report reveal a widening care-giving gap, as women in Zimbabwe take…

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“Straight from the Class to the Labour Ward,” Teen Mom Wishes “Not In My Village Campaign” Had Visited Her Village Earlier

By Michael Gwarisa in Chiweshe She is Forget Nyamukandenga (19) from Chiweshe, Mashonaland Central. At age 17, in 2022, she was impregnated by a 24-year-old man, a development she says completely changed the course of her life. When she fell pregnant, she was doing her Upper Sixth studies in Mt Darwin and was due to write her examinations in November of the same year. Left with no option, her parents had to send her away to stay with the man responsible for her pregnancy. This period marked the genesis of…

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High Prevalence Of Syphilis in Divorced Zimbabweans-New Study

By Kudakwashe Pembere Zimbabwean individuals divorced, separated or widowed had high chances of contracting  active syphilis unlike the married or cohabiting couples, a study found. In a study published in The Lancet journal, it emerged the trend was not only common among Zimbabweans but Zambians and Ugandans as well. The study sought to ascertain the prevalence of syphilis in HIV positive and HIV negative persons in Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe from 2015 to 2018. Divorced, separated, or widowed individuals had significantly higher odds of active syphilis in Uganda,…

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WHO-Afro Calls For Collaborative Cross-Border Surveillance for Mpox In Africa

By Michael Gwarisa While Mpox cases have been on a downward trend in most World Health Organisation (WHO) regions, the same cannot be said for Africa as cases have been increasing every month since the beginning of 2024. With over 99,000 laboratory-confirmed cases, and 208 deaths having been confirmed globally since January 2024, the total number of cases reported in 12 African countries as of August 18, 2024, according to the WHO Afro Region is 4,562 and 35 lab-confirmed deaths. WHO has since declared Mpox a Public Health Emergency of…

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WHO declares mpox a global health emergency

  The World Health Organization on Wednesday finally declared the spread of mpox in some African countries a public health emergency of international concern. The declaration comes hot on the heels after the Africa CDC declared the disease a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS). The decision from WHO came following the advice the UN health arm’s Director General Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus got from a panel of experts on the disease. “Today, the Emergency Committee on #mpox met and advised me that in its view, the situation constitutes a…

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