About: World Health Organization
African Union slams vaccine manufacturers for restricting access
The African Union on Tuesday (14 September) accused manufacturers of COVID-19 vaccines of denying African countries a fair chance to buy them, and urged manufacturing countries - in particular India - to lift export restrictions on vaccines and their components.
Richer countries winning Europe’s vaccine race
Europe may have fully vaccinated almost half of its population against Covid-19, but the richer countries are far outstripping the poorer ones. This disparity, often along West-East lines, has raised concerns from the European Commission and the World Health Organisation.
WHO sounds alarm over rising COVID deaths in Europe
The World Health Organisation warned Monday (30 August) that 236,000 more people could die from COVID in Europe by December, sounding the alarm over rising infections and stagnating vaccine rates across the continent. Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czechia, North Macedonia and Bulgaria are among the countries with the highest mortality.
Facing backlash, EU says import of J&J vaccines from South Africa is temporary
The European Commission said it had reached a temporary agreement with South Africa to use a plant there to bottle Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines that are being imported into the EU, after criticism of the arrangement.
Ignoring WHO call, major nations stick to vaccine booster plans
Germany, France and Israel will go ahead with plans to administer COVID-19 vaccine boosters, disregarding an appeal by the World Health Organisation to hold off until more people are vaccinated around the world.
China rejects WHO plan for study of COVID-19 origin
China rejected on Thursday (22 July) a World Health Organization (WHO) plan for a second phase of an investigation into the origin of the coronavirus, which includes the hypothesis it could have escaped from a Chinese laboratory, a top health...
WHO asks for re-checks of research on when coronavirus first surfaced in Italy
Samples from a study suggesting the coronavirus was circulating outside China by October 2019 have been re-tested at the World Health Organization's (WTO) request, two scientists who led the Italian research said.
G20 snubs COVID patent waiver, waters down pledge on WHO’s funding
Leaders of the world’s largest economies back “voluntary licensing” of COVID-19 vaccine patents, the draft conclusions of a summit show, watering down a US push for waivers and earlier commitments to supply more funds to the World Health Organization.
WHO urges rich countries to donate shots instead of vaccinating children
The World Health Organization urged rich countries on Friday (14 May) to reconsider plans to vaccinate children and instead donate COVID-19 shots to the COVAX scheme that shares them with poorer nations. The WHO is hoping more countries will follow...
EU countries fail to reach a common position on how to use the AstraZeneca jab
EU member countries have adopted different tactics on how to use the AstraZeneca vaccine, despite the Commission’s push for a coordinated approach.
EU countries resume AstraZeneca jabs after ‘safe’ verdict
Leading EU countries said Thursday (18 March) they would resume AstraZeneca vaccinations after the European medical regulator said the jab is "safe and effective" and not associated with a higher blood clot risk after days of commotion around the shot.
Major EU nations halt AstraZeneca while WHO insists the jab is safe
The EU's largest countries joined a stream of states halting their rollouts of AstraZeneca jabs on Monday (15 March) over blood clot fears, as the World Health Organization and Europe's medicines watchdog insisted it was safe to use.
US lambasts Russian vaccine ‘disinformation’, more doses arrive under the Covax initiative
Covid-19 vaccination efforts are gathering steam in Africa, while the EU said it was working to secure a big increase in vaccine supplies to improve its slow roll-out, and the United States denounced what it called a Russian disinformation campaign.
First vaccines delivered under global Covax scheme
Ghana became the first country to receive India-made vaccines from the global Covax scheme, paving the way for poorer nations to catch up with inoculation drives in wealthier parts of the world to stamp out the coronavirus pandemic.
WHO slams rich states for hogging vaccines
The World Health Organization on Monday (22 February) blasted wealthy countries for not only hogging Covid vaccines but in doing so, hindering the pathway for poorer nations to get them too.
UK says it shares US concerns over WHO COVID-19 mission to China
British foreign minister Dominic Raab said on Sunday (14 February) he shared concerns about the level of access given to a World Health Organization COVID-19 fact-finding mission to China, echoing criticism from the United States.
COVID may have taken ‘convoluted path’ to Wuhan, WHO team leader says
The head of a WHO-led team probing the origins of COVID-19 said bats remain a likely source and that transmission of the virus via frozen food is a possibility that warrants further investigation, but he ruled out a lab leak.
European Commission to defend vaccine plan as virus forces more curbs
The European Commission chief prepared to defend its stumbling vaccine rollout before the EU parliament on Wednesday (10 February) as the pandemic's grip on the continent forced Greece into tightening a lockdown around its capital.
EU backs off jab threat in Britain row as WHO warns against ‘vaccine nationalism’
The European Union on Friday (29 January) backtracked on a threat to restrict exports of coronavirus shots to Northern Ireland in its growing row with Britain, as the WHO warned against "vaccine nationalism".
US demands ‘robust’ virus origin probe as pandemic surges worldwide
The United States demanded a "robust and clear" international probe into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, as a team of World Health Organization experts in China waited Thursday for the green light to begin its long-awaited Covid-19 probe.
Global pandemic: Second night of Netherlands violence, Biden touts herd immunity
The Netherlands has been hit by a second night of riots, as coronavirus curfew frustrations boiled over, even as President Joe Biden said herd immunity could be achieved this year.
Covid pandemic ‘could be WHO’s Chernobyl moment for reform’
The COVID-19 pandemic could be the catalyst for much-needed reform of the World Health Organization just as the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986 forced urgent changes at the UN nuclear agency, an independent review panel said on Tuesday (19 January).
EU gets vaccine boost as WHO dampens herd immunity hopes
The European Union started the approval process for its third vaccine on Tuesday (12 January) as WHO scientists warned that herd immunity from coronavirus is unlikely this year even with mass inoculation schemes.