WHO EMRO - 2012

Cairo, 9 December 2012 - UN Women, WHO, UNFPA and UNAIDS are fully committed to stopping violence against women and to ensuring the security, safety and dignity of women and girls regardless of where, when and how this violence is perpetrated.

UN Women, WHO, UNFPA and UNAIDS express particular concern about the high vulnerability of marginalized women, including young and adolescent girls, women with disabilities, women living with HIV and women in situations of conflict, who are frequent targets of violence.

Violence against women remains a socially accepted but hidden issue in many parts of the world including the Middle East and North Africa regions. This has major negative consequences for women and girls. We know that harmful social and cultural norms contribute to perpetuation of this problem. However, data on violence against women are unreliable and sometimes unavailable, particularly data on domestic violence and conflict-related sexual violence.

UN Women, WHO, UNFPA and UNAIDS urge governments, civil society and development partners to work together to break the silence around violence against women and to increase action that will protect women from violence and respond to their needs.

Together we can change harmful social behaviour and attitudes towards women and girls and promote norms, notions and the practice of equal rights.

Together we can end impunity for perpetrators of violence against women, including domestic violence and conflict-related sexual violence.

Together we can translate our commitments into action to end violence against women and girls in the region.

Today, we stand up with the women who have the courage to speak out and the men who are increasingly stepping up to counter the “epidemic” of violence against women.

This is an issue that affects all of society.

Cairo, 29 November 2012 - On the occasion of World AIDS Day, 1 December, the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean is putting the spotlight on the HIV treatment gap in the Region.

In the Eastern Mediterranean Region, the number of people living with HIV is estimated at 561 000. While experiencing the fastest rate of increase of the HIV epidemic in the world, the Region is providing the lowest coverage of HIV prevention, treatment and care services.

More than eighty-five per cent (85%) of people living with HIV in the Region who need life-saving antiretroviral therapy do not receive it.

The global theme for the World AIDS Campaign this year is “Getting to Zero”: zero new HIV infections. Zero discrimination. Zero AIDS-related deaths. In a message on the occasion of World AIDS Day 2012, Dr Ala Alwan, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, reiterated that without ending the treatment gap in the Region and without scaling up HIV testing and counselling and other prevention interventions, the Region is far from getting to zero. For this reason, the regional theme for the World AIDS Campaign under “Getting to Zero” addresses HIV testing and counselling.

The main contributor to this treatment gap is the low uptake of HIV testing and counselling services. In particular, people at higher risk of HIV, that is, people who inject drugs, men who have sex with men and sex workers, are still not being reached by available testing and counselling services

Less than 15% of those who need treatment are actually receiving it. The main bottleneck is that less than 5% of the population of the Region knows its HIV status. Lack of awareness, fear of stigma and discrimination and inadequate service delivery prevent people from taking an HIV test.

The regional AIDS campaign 2012 is aimed at promoting HIV testing and counselling as a key service to increase access to HIV treatment and care.

“It starts with an HIV test. HIV testing and counselling services are an imperative gateway to HIV prevention, treatment and care. By knowing their HIV status, people living with HIV can access treatment and care services. With counselling and necessary behaviour change interventions, people living with HIV can also prevent further transmission of the virus to others; and people who are HIV negative can assert their personal choices, which can help them maintain a life without HIV” Dr Alwan said.

The global number of people living with HIV amounts to 34.2 million people. The World AIDS Campaign focus on “Zero AIDS related deaths” signifies a push towards greater access to treatment for all; a call for governments to act now and to hit targets for domestic spending on health and HIV.

In over 30 years since the appearance of HIV, the understanding of the virus and its transmission dynamics has grown. Similarly, the evidence with regard to effective interventions has accumulated, increasing the ability to care for and treat those who are living with HIV, and to control the spread of the virus.

HIV testing and counselling services should also be made available where further transmission of HIV can be controlled, such as in antenatal care services for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV. Also, HIV testing should be adapted in accordance with social and cultural norms, HIV testing should beroutinely offered to tuberculosis patients and patients with sexually transmitted infections.

“I call upon countries, civil society and technical partners to make available and improve access to HIV testing and counselling. I call upon individuals to seek HIV testing and counselling. It starts with an HIV test. When you know better, you live better.” said the Regional Director.

17 November 2012 - The World Health Organization (WHO) is deeply concerned about the escalating situation in the Gaza Strip and Israel and its impact on the health and lives of civilian populations in the area.

As of noon Saturday 17 November, the Ministry of Health in Gaza reported that 38 people had been killed: 27 adults, of whom 2 are women, and 11 children under the age of 18. 3 people were also reported killed in Israel. 382 people in Gaza were injured: 245 adults, of whom 76 are women, and 137 children. Many of those injured have been admitted to hospitals with severe burns, injuries from collapsing buildings and head injuries. Health authorities in Gaza have formed an operations room for the health sector and declared an emergency situation in all hospitals to cope with patients.

Before the hostilities began, health facilities were severely over stretched mainly as a result of the siege of Gaza. There has been a lack of investment in training, equipment and infrastructure, poor maintenance of medical equipment and frequent interruptions of power supplies. The Ministry of Health in Gaza was also facing critical shortages of drugs and disposables, with 192 drugs (40% of the essential medicine list), and 586 medical disposables (65% of the essential list) at zero stock. Many of the drugs at zero stock are lifesaving.

Consequently, Gaza hospitals are now having to deal with the growing number of casualties with severely depleted medical supplies. The Ministry of Health has postponed all elective surgeries due to the emergency and shortages in anesthesia drugs. Non-urgent cases have been transferred to NGO hospitals and health personnel have been asked to report to the nearest health facility for extended shifts.

WHO is working with the Ministry of Health, United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and health partners in trying to ensure that essential medicines and medical consumables are delivered to health facilities where they are needed most. UNRWA operates 21 primary health care centers for 1.2 million refugees in Gaza and is preparing emergency assistance to the refugees. WHO will continue to monitor the overall health situation with the aim of supporting the functionality of the health system in this time of critical need.

WHO appeals to the international and regional community for urgent financial support to provide essential medicines to cover pre-existing shortages, as well as emergency supplies for treating casualties and the chronically ill. WHO requires $ 10m to cover all medicines and medical supplies for 3 months and will collaborate with donors to ensure that any donations are consistent with the needs in Gaza and conform to the drug donation guidelines endorsed by WHO and a number of international partners. See WHO's guidelines for drug donations at:

http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/1999/WHO_EDM_PAR_99.4.pdf [pdf 72kb]

Standing up to the “epidemic” of violence against women

Scaling up HIV testing and counselling is crucial for “getting to zero” World AIDS Day, 1 December 2012

World Health Organization concerned over the emergency situation in Gaza