Cuba has developed world’s first conjugate COVID 19 vaccine Soberana 2.

Cuba has said its homegrown Covid-19 vaccine Soberana 2 (Sovereign 2), when delivered with a booster shot of Soberana Plus, is about 91 per cent effective against symptomatic Covid-19 cases as demonstrated in its late stage clinical trials. Soon after the results were announ…

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has updated its patient care guidelines.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has updated its patient care guidelines to include interleukin-6 receptor blockers, a class of medicines that are lifesaving in patients who are severely or critically ill with COVID-19, especially when administered alongside corticostero…

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Sri Lanka is in alert on most dangerous Corona variant found in Peru.

Sri Lanka too could expect the arrival of the most dangerous variant  of coronavirus called Lambda, Deputy Director General of Health Services Dr. Hemantha Herath yesterday told the media. Dr. Hearth said that the Lambda variant had been detected in more than 30 countries du…

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China declared officially as a malaria-free country by WHO.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared China malaria-free, after a 70-year effort to wipe it out. China used to report 30 million cases a year during the 1940s. Since then, eradication efforts have driven down case numbers. The country used various methods to break …

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Singapore’s surprising new plan to ‘Live with Covid’ revealed.

A country that has been one of the world’s most successful at combating Covid-19 has announced it will soon fundamentally change how it manages the pandemic. The city state of Singapore has stated covid will be treated like other endemic diseases such as flu. There will be no…

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Iran approves first homegrown COVID-19 vaccine.

Iran has approved an emergency use of its first domestically developed coronavirus vaccine called "COVIran Barakat" that could bring the hardest-hit country in the Middle East closer to inoculating its citizens against COVID-19. The emergency authorization was appr…

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US 'to buy 500 million Covid vaccine doses for world'.

US President Joe Biden's administration will provide 500 million doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine to about 100 countries over the next two years. About 200 million doses will be distributed this year, with the remainder delivered in 2022. The US has been under pressur…

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China-Sri Lanka Friendship National Nephrology Specialized Hospital declared open.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa declared open the China-Sri Lanka Friendship National Nephrology Specialized Hospital in Polonnaruwa this morning (11). Sri Lanka received the hospital complex as a full grant from the Chinese Government at the request of former President Maithri…

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UNICEF signs COVID-19 vaccine supply agreement with Moderna.

UNICEF has signed a long-term agreementwith Moderna for the supply of COVID-19 vaccine on behalf of the COVAX Facility.   Through the supply agreement, UNICEF, along with procurement partners including the PanAmerican Health Organization (PAHO), will have access to up to 34 …

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Canada recommends mixing and matching AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.

Canada is changing its guidelines on mixing and matching second doses of COVID-19 vaccines and is now advising Canadians to combine either the AstraZeneca-Oxford, Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna shots interchangeably in certain situations. The National Advisory Committee on Immun…

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Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga pledges $800 mn to COVAX facility.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Wednesday pledged an additional USD 800 million to COVAX facility aiming for a fair distribution of coronavirus vaccines worldwide. The announcement came at an online vaccine summit which Japan co-hosted with the GAVI vaccine allianc…

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China reports first human case of H10N3 Bird Flu.

A 41-year-old man in China’s eastern province of Jiangsu has been confirmed as the first human case of infection with a rare strain of bird flu known as H10N3. Beijing’s National Health Commission (NHC) confirmed this on Tuesday 01 June 2021. Many different strains of bird fl…

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China's "Sinovac" vaccine gets WHO emergency approval.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved China's "Sinovac" Covid vaccine for emergency use. WHO said it prevented symptomatic disease in 51% of those vaccinated and prevented severe symptoms and hospitalisation in 100% of samples. Some evidence and data …

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74th World Health Assembly adopts decision to recognize 30 January as World NTD Day.

Delegates at the 74th World Health Assembly unanimously adopted a proposal by the UAE to declare January 30 as ‘World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day’. The proposal to recognise the day was floated by the United Arab Emirates. It was adopted unanimously by the delegate…

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Dr. Abeykoon wins the South-East Asia Region WHO World No Tobacco Day 2021 award.

In recognition of his extraordinary contribution to combatting harmful tobacco use, Dr Palitha Abeykoon, Former Chairman of National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol in Sri Lanka, International Pubilc Health Expert, and WHO Director-General Special Envoy for COVID-19 Prepar…

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WHO names COVID-19 variants found in India as 'Kappa' and 'Delta'

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday 31 May 2021 announced news labels, using Greek alphabets, for various variants of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), also giving names to the two variants that have been first found in India thus far. Covid variant first found i…

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Vietnam detects a new UK-Indian coronavirus variant.

Vietnam has detected a Covid variant that appears to be a combination of the Indian and UK variants and can spread quickly by air, officials say. Vietnam's Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long described the latest mutation as "very dangerous". Viruses mutate all th…

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EU approves Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 12-15 year old.

The EU's medicines agency (EMA) has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 12-15 year olds, the first jab allowed for this age group in the bloc. Individual member states must now decide if they will offer the vaccine to children.  The US and Canada approved the Pfizer …

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International Week of Solidarity with the Peoples of Non-Self-Governing Territories: 25-31 May.

The United Nations is observing the International Week of Solidarity with the Peoples of Non-Self-Governing Territories from May 25 to 31, 2021. On December 06, 1999, the UN General Assembly called for the annual observance of the Week of Solidarity with the Peoples of Non-…

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WHO and Switzerland launch global BioHub.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Swiss Confederation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding to launch the first WHO BioHub Facility as part of the WHO BioHub System, which was announced in November 2020.  This facility will enhance the rapid sharing of viruses a…

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