A new report released in June, last year had shown that the prevalence of malaria amongst children under five years had skyrocketed from 9 per cent in 2011 to 14 per cent in 2016.
The findings are contained in the preliminary report on the 2015/16 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey and Malaria Indicator Survey (TDHS-MIS) on prevalence of malaria to children under five years.
The survey, conducted from August last year in both Tanzania mainland and Zanzibar, showed that prevalence of malaria by Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT) in 2015/16 was much higher compared with 2011/12 THMIS results.
According to the report, the decline in the use of mosquito nets and low distribution of nets to households has contributed considerably to the worrying trend. The survey covered 13,376 households.
Prospective parents in Africa have reason to smile following the launch of a collaborative partnership to develop a new vaccine against Group B Streptococcus (GBS)—killer bacterial infection pregnant mothers pass to newborns during delivery.
The South Africa–based Biovac Institute (Biovac) and PATH, an international health organisation, made the announcement on Tuesday at the Innovation Effect Africa symposium held alongside the World Economic Forum event in Durban.
Biovac, a public-private partnership based in Cape Town, South Africa, will be one of only three companies in the world and the only developing-country vaccine manufacturer to develop a novel conjugate vaccine against GBS. The new initiative is supported by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
According to a statement released on Tuesday by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, GBS is a leading cause of severe infection in newborns and young infants in many countries, especially Africa.
“Whilst people of all ages can contract the GBS bacterial infection, newborns are more susceptible and vulnerable to this potentially deadly infection—particularly as an estimated 1 in 4 pregnant women carries the GBS bacterium, which can be passed to babies during birth,” the statement reads and adds;
“In parts of the developing world, mortality rates can reach as high as 38 percent. Babies who survive the disease are often left with lifelong disabilities such as deafness, blindness, and developmental delays. GBS may also play a role in miscarriage and stillbirth.”
The statement further notes that a vaccine against GBS would be revolutionary in that it would be given to pregnant mothers who would pass on the protective antibodies to their babies, ensuring protection at birth and during the first critical months of life (when late-onset GBS disease is a risk).
“Biovac has demonstrated the ability to successfully partner with leading multinational companies in vaccine manufacture. This recent collaboration with PATH and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation further adds to Biovac being the partner of choice in human vaccines in Africa and fulfils our quest to not only being a manufacturer but a true developer of novel vaccines aimed at African and developing-world diseases,” said Dr Morena Makhoana, CEO of Biovac.
We can identify new opportunities to address sustainable development challenges
THE purpose of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD) is to help raise awareness on possibilities that the use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) can bring to societies and economies, as well as of ways to bridge the digital divide.
17 May marks the anniversary of the signing of the first International Telegraph Convention and the creation of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
World Telecommunication Day has been celebrated annually on 17 May since 1969, marking the founding of ITU and the signing of the first International Telegraph Convention in 1865. It was instituted by the Plenipotentiary Conference in Malaga-Torremolinos in 1973.
In November 2005, the World Summit on the Information Society called upon the UN General Assembly to declare 17 May as World Information Society Day to focus on the importance of ICT and the wide range of issues related to the Information Society raised by WSIS. The General Assembly adopted a resolution in March 2006 stipulating that World Information Society Day shall be celebrated every year on 17 May.
In November 2006, the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference in Antalya, Turkey, decided to celebrate both events on 17 May as World Telecommunication and Information Society Day.
The updated Resolution 68 invites member states and Sector Members to celebrate the day annually by organising appropriate national programmes with a view to: First, stimulating reflection and exchanges of ideas on the theme adopted by the Council ; Second, debating the various aspects of the theme with all partners in society; Third; formulating a report reflecting national discussions on the issues underlying the theme, to be fed back to ITU and the rest of its membership .
The theme for World Telecommunication and Information Society Day 2017 "Big Data for Big Impact," focuses on the power of big data for development and aims to explore how to turn imperfect, complex, often unstructured data into actionable information in a development context.
The insight brought on by advanced analysis can strongly complement the evidence-based nature of decision-making that can be leveraged at national, regional and international levels to drive success towards attaining all 17 of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030.
The theme for WTISD-17 is in line with ITU's work highlighting the technological developments that have facilitated the emergence of big data, developing standards related to big data and identifying sources and uses of big data, including use of big data technologies for developing and monitoring improvements in information societies.
Activities undertaken by the ITU membership will contribute towards building political momentum to embrace big data and leverage insights to identify new opportunities to creatively address sustainable development challenges.
The Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) is Tanzania’s national ICT converged regulator. It was established by the TCRA Act as an independent Authority for the Postal, Broadcasting and Electronic communications industries in the United
Republic of Tanzania.
TCRA was empowered by the government to manage and supervise the digital migration.
The process of migration from analogue to digital terrestrial television in Tanzania started
in 2005.
_0.jpg?itok=QU87XW8D){kind=tracking}
.jpeg?itok=vCj6bCRe)
