Shortage of safe water risks cholera in Iraq - UN
United Nations agencies working in Iraq have warned a chronic shortage of safe drinking water risks causing more child deaths and an outbreak of waterborne disease such as cholera during the summer. Four years after the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, millions of Iraqi children still find that safe water is no easier to access, said a statement issued by leading UN aid agencies operating in Iraq.

Reuters, March 22, 2007

Breastfeeding alone cuts HIV risk
Exclusively breastfeeding until a baby is six-months old can significantly reduce the risk of mother-to-child HIV transmission, an African study says. The South African researchers compared solely breastfed babies with those also given formula or solid foods. They say breastfeeding carries a low transmission risk, but protects against potentially fatal conditions such as diarrhoea and pneumonia. They say it is the best option for most women in the developing world.

BBC News, April1, 2007

Government schools at risk of water-borne diseases
LAHORE, PAKISTAN: The students of the city's government schools are at risk of water-borne diseases because the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) has failed to start cleaning the water tanks in 1,300 government schools of the city owing to shortage of funds and manpower.

The Daily Times, March 30, 2007

UN says spread of TB in PNG under-reported
The World Health Organisation in Papua New Guinea says the spread of tuberculosis is under-reported and it's likely that more than the estimated 50 percent of its population is infected with the disease. The Global Fund has agreed to give PNG 20 million US dollars for the next five years to help in its fight against TB.

Radio New Zealand, March 22, 2007

NEPAL: Villagers suffer lack of doctors and medicines
Ram Hari Bista had to carry his 60-year-old sick mother, Nona, on his bare back for nearly six hours to reach the nearest functioning hospital. His local health centre in the remote village of Rimikot in Accham district, 800km northwest of the capital, Kathmandu, ran out of medicines several months ago. "The health care access is so bad in most villages that people die from simple diseases that can be cured with ordinary pills," said Dhana Thakula, a 33-year-old Female Health Care Volunteer (FCHV) who has seen villagers die from diarrhoea, pneumonia, typhoid and several other curable diseases.

IRIN, March 26, 2007

Child Health
It has been estimated that two-thirds of all childhood deaths could be prevented. The constraint is not lack of knowledge, but rather inadequate health systems. Provision of high quality case-management is essential. However, this must be accompanied by efforts to ensure equitable access to health care and achieve wide-scale coverage of preventive interventions, including immunisation, promotion of appropriate feeding practices for infants and young children, and insecticide-treated nets to prevent malaria.

Visit their site

World Health Organisation (WHO)
The WHO is the United Nations specialised agency for health. WHO's objective is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health is defined as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
The site can be accessed in six languages and includes information and statistics on the health status of countries throughout the world, news on disease outbreaks, a listing of health research tools, as well as detailed information on a range of health topics.

www.who.int/en/

Ayiti: The Cost of Life
What is it like to live in poverty, struggling every day to stay healthy, keep out of debt, and get educated? Find out by participating in a challenging role-play game created by Global Kids and Gamelab, in which you take responsibility for a family of five in rural Haiti.

UNICEF - Voices of Youth

Risen Lord,
shed your light on those who live in the shadow of death
and warm the hearts of those who have lost hope,
that they who daily bear the cross of hunger
may find your Promised Land,
and move from slavery to freedom.
As we proclaim your Easter song
help us to die to greed and rise to justice,
to abandon apathy and take up action,
that rich and poor together may travel the road to freedom,
and be restored to your resurrection life. Amen.

© Annabel Shilson-Thomas/CAFOD