AFRICA: New Drugs To Speed TB Treatment

Researchers are testing a new combination of tuberculosis drugs on patients in South Africa which they are hoping will shorten the treatment term of the disease to six months.

Vaccines Make Gradual Headway Against Child Pneumonia

It had seemed her kids had the flu or a cold. But when it got worse, she took little Abigail to hospital. It was already too late; Abigail died in her mother's arms.

CONGO: Polio Kills 100

An emergency vaccination campaign against polio begins Nov. 12 in the Republic of Congo, where an epidemic centred on the southern city of Pointe-Noire has killed at least 100 people since the beginning of October.

AFRICA: Church Leaders An Obstacle To Preventing Maternal Deaths

The resurgence in religious fundamentalism and the inordinate influence of certain church leaders over public health policy present major obstacles to the prevention of needless deaths and injuries of women from unsafe abortion on the African continent.

Toxic Hotspots Require Global Superfund

One of the world's biggest health threats is also one of the least recognised - more than 100 million people who literally breathe and eat toxic pollutants like lead, mercury, chromium every day, according to the first-ever detailed assessment.

ZAMBIA: Debate Over Windfall Tax

The Zambian government has been accused of embracing poverty as the debate over a windfall tax on the mining industry heats up.

Water Out of Thin Air for South African School

It takes a moment to understand what the six-metre high net has been set up to capture: water. The Tshiavha Primary School's water supply is pulled out of the fog that rises over this mountainous part of South Africa's Limpopo Province.

Math Doesn’t Add Up to Keep School Doors Open

As donors meet this week to allocate funds for global education, advocates warn that diminished support has forced many poor countries to consider closing schools and sacking teachers.

New Staple Crop Varieties Take Aim at Malnutrition

When the Green Revolution took root in the 1960s and 1970s, plant biologists' main concern was increasing the yield of the staple crops on which people in poor countries depended. This, it stood to reason, would increase the amount of food available to the world's poor – and decrease hunger.

BURKINA FASO: Cost Major Obstacle to Reducing Maternal Mortality

Elizabeth Kaboré says she has paid for each of her visits to the clinic, despite a government promise that prenatal check-ups in health centres would be free.

AFRICA: Malaria Vaccine To Protect the Most Vulnerable

As nearly 25 years of development of a malaria vaccine come to fruition, health authorities across Africa will need to come to grips with how to effectively introduce it.

RWANDA: Stronger Support for Children Affected by HIV

At Kigali's Kibagabaga Hospital, 30 young people aged between 12 and 18 years old wait in a crowded holding room, waiting for their turn to see the doctor in charge of prescribing antiretroviral drugs (ARVs). They are among 220,000 children affected by AIDS who are benefiting from social and medical assistance from the Rwandan government and its development partners.

No Rest for the Weary – Women Declare War on Gender Violence

Women from a dozen countries convened in New York this week to share their struggles to implement state legislation and empower women at the grassroots level to put an end to gender- based violence (GBV) worldwide.

Nicaragua on Obstacle Course to Women’s Equality

Nicaragua has made some progress promoting gender equity and the empowerment of women, but it will have to step up efforts and overcome a number of hurdles if it is to eliminate inequalities between the sexes at all levels by 2015.

NAMIBIA: Run-of-the River Power Stations Planned for Lower Orange River

Namibia's national power utility says plans are moving ahead to construct a series of hydro-electric power stations along the Lower Orange River.

Cancer Treatment Out of Reach for Ugandan Women

Josephine Adongo's heart leapt when she heard that two doctors from Kampala were offering free medical exams in Soroti. She was diagnosed with cervical cancer at a regional hospital more than a year previously, but unable to afford to travel to the capital for treatment.

Congo Leaves Locals Out of Conservation Plans

"Today, I'm ashamed to have signed the documents creating this park, because I didn't know that we would die of hunger in the middle of the forest." Mpaka- Mbouiti is a leader in the village of Loussala, in the Conkouati-Douli National Park.

Developing World Scores on Health, Wealth and Education

When the Human Development Report (HDR) was introduced back in 1990, it broke new ground, arguing that national development should be measured not simply by income alone but also by life expectancy and literacy.

AFRICA: FIFA Moves Against Trafficking of Young Footballers

When he was 15, Maurice Koné dreamed of becoming a great footballer. Adored for his technical skill and eye for goal by fans in Koumassi, a neighbourhood in the south of Abidjan, he dreamed of living the life of a professional overseas.

CARIBBEAN: Progress Stalls on HIV/AIDS

Despite the gains associated with antiretroviral treatments (ART) over the last decade, HIV/AIDS remains the leading cause of death among young and middle-aged adults in the Caribbean, warns a new U.N. report.

Safeguard Issues Shadow Forests Rescue Plan

As national policies are developed to implement REDD, the U.N. effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, a key question has been how to ensure social and environmental standards are upheld in REDD projects, both at the national and international level.