Ahead of World Malaria Day on 25 April, the World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a significant step forward in the fight against malaria with the prequalification of the first treatment developed specifically for newborns and young infants weighing between two and five kilograms. The prequalification designation indicates that the medicine meets international standards of quality, safety and efficacy, and will help to expand access to quality-assured treatment for one of the most underserved patient groups.

• The Big Catch-Up, launched during World Immunization Week 2023, has delivered over 100 million vaccine doses to an estimated 18.3 million children across 36 countries
  
• Around 12.3 million were “zero-dose children” who had not previously received any vaccines and 15 million who had never received a measles vaccine. 
  
• The initiative concluded in March 2026 and is on track to meet its target of catching up 21 million children – but agencies warn that many infants still miss out on lifesaving vaccines through routine immunization every year.

The Big Catch-Up (BCU), a historic multi-year, multi-country effort to address vaccination declines driven largely by the COVID-19 pandemic, has reached an estimated 18.3 million children aged 1 to 5 across 36 countries with more than 100 million doses of life-saving vaccines, helping to narrow critical immunity gaps, announced Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi), WHO, and UNICEF at the start of World Immunization Week.

The World Health Organization (WHO) today released its Results Report, highlighting measurable improvements in people’s health worldwide in 2025, despite funding cuts affecting both the organization and the broader global health sector.

In a landmark achievement for Caribbean public health, the World Health Organization (WHO) congratulates The Bahamas for becoming the latest Caribbean nation to be certified as having eliminated the mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

An estimated 4.9 million children died before their fifth birthday in 2024, including 2.3 million newborns, according to new estimates released today. Most of these deaths are preventable with proven, low-cost interventions and access to quality health care.

More than ten days into the latest escalation of conflict in the Middle East, health systems across the Region are coming under strain as injuries and displacement rise, attacks on health care continue, and public health risks increase.

As Ukraine enters the fifth year of full-scale war, its people have endured the highest number of attacks on their health care in 2025 – increasing by nearly 20% compared to 2024.

Joint statement by the UNFPA Executive Director, UNICEF Executive Director, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Women Executive Director, WHO Director-General, and UNESCO Director-General on the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation