Servaas van den Bosch
WINDHOEK, Jul 28 2009 (IPS) – While paediatric HIV remains a growing concern throughout Southern Africa, Namibian doctors have managed to put high numbers of babies on the life-saving antiretroviral (ARV) treatment with the help of an early infant diagnosis (EID) programme based on dry blood sampling.
Since the launch of the EID programme in 2006, the number of HIV-infected newborns has dropped from 13 percent to two percent in Namibia, according to the national Ministry of Health.
These figures stand in sharp contrast with data from other African countries where many pregnant women are not diagnosed in time to prevent mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of the virus and only a few HIV-positive infants receive ARVs.
A 2009 study by the C…
TOKYO, Oct 1 2012 (IPS) – According to popular belief, the world’s rapidly ageing societies face the risk of poverty, dementia and loneliness. But not necessarily so, says a United Nations publication unveiled in Japan Monday. Better management by governments can support a better life for the elderly, and lead them to becoming important contributors to society, it says.
The report ‘’ published by the United Nations Population Fund with HelpAge International, a leading non-governmental organisation, points out that ageing can be a cause for celebration if the elderly enjoy economic and social security.
“Longevity is a triumph of development,” Dr Babatunde Osotimehin, executive director of the United Nations Population Fund told IPS. The elderly can make a social…
This is part of a series of special stories on world population and challenges to the Sustainable Development Goals on the occasion of World Population Day on July 11.
A basket of condoms is passed around during International Women’s Day in Manila. Credit: Kara Santos/IPS
UNITED NATIONS, Jul 10 2014 (IPS) – As the United Nations continues negotiations on a new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for its post-2015 development agenda, population experts are hoping reproductive health will be given significant recognition in the final line-up of the goals later this year.
At the same time, an upcoming Special Session of the General Assembly in mid-Se…