Public health
Priority health concerns
Pregnancy doesn't stop during a pandemic. Neither do human rights.
Covid-19 has taken an enormous toll on women and girls around the world as a direct consequence of national lockdowns and the sidelining of sexual and reproductive health services. Health systems are struggling to respond to the pandemic. As the crisis rages on, the number of women ...
Natalia Kanem, Naomi Kitahara
Central Highlands put on high alert as diphtheria cases hit 65
Vietnam’s Central Highlands reported 17 cases of diphtheria Tuesday, raising the total to 65 in a month, prompting health authorities to take stronger action against the deadly disease. With the new cases, Dak Nong now has 25 cases, Kon Tum 23, Gia Lai 16 while Dak ...
Tran Hoa
Opinion: Building climate resilience for malaria elimination
Climate Change is one of the biggest threats humanity has ever faced. By all accounts, and if not mitigated, it will have a devastating impact on life as we know it: rising sea levels that inundate coast lines causing mass migration on a level never ...
Vaibhav Gupta
Govt officials urged to expedite aid to the unemployed
Local labour authorities around the country need to quickly implement government measures to assist the unemployed and help cushion inevitable job losses in the months to come, according to a leading official. Director-General of the Department of Labour Skill Development at the Ministry of Labour and ...
Phetphoxay Sengpaseuth
Dengue Fever Infections on the Rise Nationwide
149 cases of dengue fever have been reported in the last nine days, with two deaths attributed to the disease. According to a report by Lao Post, more than 1,000 cases of dengue fever have been confirmed in Laos this year. The Centre of Information and Education for Health, ...
Latsamy Phonevilay
After aggressive mass testing, Vietnam says it contains COVID-19 outbreak
Businessman Phan Quoc Viet was making his usual prayers at a pagoda in Tay Ninh, a province in southern Vietnam, when the government official’s call came. It was late January, just after the Lunar New Year. Vietnam had detected its first two cases of the new ...
Khanh Vu, Phuong Nguyen, James Pearson
Key Data for Myanmar & COVID-19
Myanmar’s Ministry of Health and Sports confirmed on Monday that two Myanmar nationals who recently arrived from overseas have tested positive for COVID-19 in Chin State and Yangon Region. One had traveled to the United States and another had visited the UK during the past ...
NAN LWIN
Suvarnabhumi virus screening limited
Officials at Suvarnabhumi Airport say they are awaiting more information from Chinese authorities before deciding whether to expand screening of passengers arriving from China to try to detect the new coronavirus that is causing worldwide concern. China, meanwhile, announced late Saturday that all group tours from ...
Recognition of Public Health Threats from Live Animal Markets Called for in the Wake of Human Coronavirus Outbreak
Closing live animal markets that trade in wildlife, strengthening efforts to combat trafficking of wild animals, and working to change dangerous wildlife consumption behaviours are all needed, said the leading wildlife conservation group, WCS. With the outbreak of the Wuhan Coronavirus, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) ...
Asia's hardest year for dengue fever – in pictures
The global toll of dengue fever is becoming well known, with rising temperatures contributing to severe outbreaks that made 2019 the worst year on record for the disease. In 1970 only nine countries faced severe dengue outbreaks. But the disease, which is spread by mosquitoes that ...
Photographer Luke Duggleby and journalist Laure Siegel