WHO | Week Ahead for media - 21 March, 2025

No images? Click here Friday, 21 March 2025 | Issue 296   Subscribe to receive this weekly update   A boy plays with a kite on a hillside in Kabul, with air pollution in the city below clearly visible © WHO / Kiana Hayeri Conflict in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory WHO work on mpox Latest news from WHO and WHO events page 24 to 28 March 2025 WHO’s Second Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health 25 to 27 March (with sessions on 24 and 28 March), Centro de Convenciones Cartagena de Indias, Cartagena, Colombia The World Health Organization’s Second Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health Accelerating action for clean air, clean energy access and climate change mitigation will be held in Centro de convenciones, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia from 25 to 27 March, with pre- and post-conference sessions on 24 and 28 March 2025. Co-organized by WHO and the Government of Colombia, with support from the governments of Spain, France, Netherlands, Norway, United Kingdom and other partners, the conference presents a pivotal moment to drive ambition and action to tackle the health, environmental, and socioeconomic impacts of air pollution.  Commitments will include setting and enforcing stronger air quality standards aligned with WHO guidelines, investing in clean energy, phasing out fossil fuel subsidies, and adopting policies that prioritize public health. 24 to 26 March 2025 WHO Global Meeting on Skin-Related NTDs WHO will host its second global meeting on skin-related neglected tropical diseases (skin NTDs) in a hybrid format.  The event will convene experts across 13 skin NTDs to discuss integration at the country level, drug access, diagnostics, research, psychosocial aspects, WASH, and One Health.  The main objectives are to share progress on integrated activities, advance the skin NTD framework and plan future actions.  Participants include health ministries, NGOs, donors, researchers, WHO representatives and people affected by skin NTDs. 25 to 26 March 2025 WHO’s Health Technology Access Programme Stakeholders Forum The World Health Organization's Health Technology Access Programme (HTAP) will host its inaugural Stakeholders Forum in Geneva, in a hybrid format, to raise awareness of HTAP’s mission, gather input on strategic and operational plans, and explore opportunities for strengthened collaboration. A key focus of this first-of-its-kind gathering will be advancing the geo-diversified development and production of high-quality, sustainable health products.  To foster ongoing engagement, collaboration, and information sharing, the Forum will be held biannually, ensuring continued progress toward HTAP’s goals. 25 to 27 March 2025 Third Executive Annual Meeting of the Quadripartite WOAH Headquarters in Paris, France (hybrid format) The third annual executive meeting of the Quadripartite collaboration on One health aims to enhance strategic decision-making and technical collaboration, bringing together senior leadership and technical teams to advance the One Health agenda.  Participants will assess successes and challenges related to political advocacy, One Health governance and investment, with a focus on sustaining and expanding One Health initiatives. The Quadripartite comprises the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). For more information: who-quadripartite-secretariat@who.int 27 and 28 March 2025 Nutrition for Growth Summit The fourth Nutrition for Growth (NfG) Summit in Paris, France will bring together government representatives, international organizations, research institutions and civil society groups to advocate for ambitious financial and political commitments to improve global nutrition. Building on the 2021 NfG summit in Tokyo, which raised US $27 billion from 181 stakeholders across 78 countries, NfG Paris will be another crucial opportunity to accelerate progress towards the 2030 SDGs and Global Nutrition Targets.  WHO has been actively working with the Government of France to prepare for the Summit, and calls on all countries to prioritize investments that aim to end malnutrition in all its forms. Monday, 24 March World Tuberculosis Day Tuberculosis (TB) continues to devastate millions globally, inflicting severe health, social, and economic consequences. On this World Tuberculosis Day, WHO is calling for an urgent investment of resources, support and care services to win the fight against TB. This year’s WHO's TB day campaign theme Yes! We Can End TB: Commit, Invest, Deliver, is a bold call for hope, urgency, and accountability.  To mark the day, WHO is organizing a World TB Day 2025: Online Talk Show on 24 March at 13.30 CET,  with speakers from WHO leadership, government representatives, heads of agencies, TB survivors, civil society and partners. For more information on TB and WHO's TB day campaign visit: World TB Day 2025.  ********** Background media briefing on super pollutants and health 24 March at 09.00 COT (14.00 GMT/15.00 CET), hybrid event (Centro de Convenciones Cartagena de Indias, Cartagena, Colombia and online) Organized by Wellcome Trust, with the participation of WHO, this media briefing will focus on the health impacts of super pollutants - a group of greenhouse gases and aerosols other than carbon dioxide (CO2), which profoundly impact global temperature and human health.  Further information: here.  Join on Zoom:  https://wellcome-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_gw-B3lm9TK6HLpTBu5Ur7Q Media inquiries: Z.Mayers@wellcome.org  Tuesday, 25 March Reports release: Levels and Trends in Child Mortality and Counting Every Stillbirth Embargoed until 01:01 GMT on 25 March The United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) will release two new reports on Tuesday, 25 March: Levels and Trends in Child Mortality and Counting Every Stillbirth.  The reports – which contain important global data sets - outline how sustained investments fueled worldwide progress in reducing child deaths and stillbirths.  Nevertheless, many children are still being lost to preventable causes, and decades of progress are now at risk as major donors cut development assistance budgets. They precede new maternal mortality estimates for 2000-2023, which will be published on World Health Day on April 7 – noting the theme this year of maternal and newborn health. Request an embargoed copy of the reports, or an interview with a WHO expert by email to keenanl@who.int with a copy to mediainquiries@who.int (embargo lifts at 01:01 GMT on 25 March). ********** WHO Guidance on Mental Health Policy 25 March, 13.00 to 14.30 CET WHO will launch new guidance on mental health policy at a webinar on 25 March.  The guidance provides a framework to transform mental health services, in line with the latest evidence and international human rights standards.  Further information and registration: here. Wednesday, 26 March Mass gatherings, safe gatherings: addressing challenges in religious events (WHO EPI-WIN Webinar) 26 March, 13.00 to 14.00 CET, webinar Mass gatherings such as large-scale religious events or pilgrimages can pose public health challenges and put pressure on the host country’s public health resources.  WHO mass gatherings programme focuses on how to coordinate and enhance health security at these substantial and important events. This webinar will provide an overview of WHO’s work on mass gatherings and share experiences from Saudi Arabia (Hajj/Umrah), Italy (Jubilee 2025), India (Kumbh Mela) and Mexico. Further information and registration: here.  Thursday, 27 March WHO hybrid press conference: Key commitments from the Second Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health 08.00 Colombia time (14.00 CET/13.00 GMT), Centro de Convenciones Cartagena de Indias, Cartagena, Colombia and online Key outcomes of the Second Global Conference on Air Pollution and Health will be presented in this high-level hybrid press conference.  Ministers of Health and Environment from Colombia and senior WHO leadership will also unveil some of the key commitments made from countries to tackle air pollution, the leading environmental threat to health.   A media advisory with further information, including speakers’ names and connection details, will be sent later.  ********** WHO Academy campus tour and One Health roundtable 27 March, 18.00 to 20.30 CET, WHO Academy, 57 Avenue Tony Garnier, Lyon, France As part of the Lyon Health Festival, explore the state-of-the-art facilities at the WHO Academy, designed for interactive learning for health professionals.  The tour will be followed by a round table discussion on ‘Urban Planning through the prism of One Health’, that will bring together stakeholders in health, urban planning and research.   Further information and registration: here.  Friday, 28 March Shaping the future of clinical trials: Building an ethical, efficient, and equitable ecosystem 13.00 to 14.30 CET, virtual A new series of articles to be published in The Lancet Global Health will explore key reforms needed to strengthen clinical trial design, ethics, regulation and infrastructure.  It will contribute to discussions on improving the quality, credibility and impact of clinical research globally.  The upcoming series will be launched in a virtual event, during which speakers will share information about the series, its alignment with ongoing efforts to strengthen clinical trials worldwide and the implications for global health research and policy. Further information and registration: here. Stories of interest: Angola improves data management to fight cholera outbreak, 20 March (in Portuguese) Ethiopia bolsters public health emergency response through workforce development with support from the Pandemic Fund, 20 March PAHO strengthens capacities to face future emergencies in Quito, Ecuador, 19 March (in Spanish) Joint statement from WHO and UNICEF on measles prevention efforts in Viet Nam, 18 March Burundi introduces malaria vaccine into routine immunization, 17 March (in French) Eighty percent of WHO-supported facilities in Afghanistan risk shutdown by June, 17 March WHO calls for urgent support to rebuild Syria’s health system, 17 March   WHO events here Sign up for our newsletters here Check out the WHO series, Science in 5 Catch a series that debunks misinformation around WHO and public health, Plot Twist Access WHO photos available for media use here WHO media contacts: mediainquiries@who.int You are receiving this NO-REPLY email because you are included on a WHO mail list. 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