COVID-19 and its impacts: The situation in Niger republic.

COVID-19 being a public health emergency of international concern has emerged in most African countries including Niger. Niger, a landlocked country, is tasked with controlling the pandemic. However, of the big challenges the country faced is the fragility of healthcare system which posed limitations to the fight against the virus. The virus overwhelmed the fragile healthcare system which led to inaccessibility of quality healthcare to the citizens coupled with issues of flooding and economic recession that happened during the pandemic. The healthcare sectored has further been crippled by exposure and infection of the already insufficient healthcare workers. In addition to this, there was the burden of NTDs and other communicable and non-communicable diseases that subverted the country in the depths of difficulties. As per the predictions of World Bank, the poverty curve is likely to escalate due to the outrageous impacts of COVID-19. Adding on to this, the occurrence of natural disasters such as flooding has further stretched the country. It's no coincidence that the country would confront plethora of challenges amidst the second wave. Therefore, timely decision and necessary interventions are needed to strengthen the country's fight against the pandemic. However, this is only feasible when Nigerien government, international allies and other wealthy nations work closely to ensure that the challenges faced by the healthcare system are tackled.

Monkeypox vaccination in the global south: Fighting a war without a weapon.

Background: The Mpox outbreak awakened countries worldwide to renew efforts in epidemiological surveillance and vaccination of susceptible populations. In terms of Mpox vaccination, various challenges exist in the global south, which impede adequate vaccine coverage, especially in Africa. This paper reviewed the situation of Mpox vaccination in the global south and potential ameliorative approaches. Methods: A review of online literature from PubMed and Google Scholar concerning Mpox vaccination in countries belonging to the 'global south' category was done between August and September, 2022. The major focus areas included inequity in global vaccine distribution, challenges impeding vaccine coverage in the global south, and potential strategies for bridging the gap in vaccine equity. The papers that met the inclusion criteria were collated and narratively discussed. Results: Our analysis revealed that, while the high-income countries secured large supplies of the Mpox vaccines, the low- and middle-income countries were unable to independently access substantial quantities of the vaccine and had to rely on vaccine donations from high-income countries, as was the case during the COVID-19 pandemic. The challenges in the global south particularly revolved around inadequate vaccine production capacity due to lack of qualified personnel and specialized infrastructure for full vaccine development and manufacturing, limited cold chain equipment for vaccine distribution, and consistent vaccine hesitancy. Conclusion: To tackle the trend of vaccine inequity in the global south, African governments and international stakeholders must invest properly in adequate production and dissemination of Mpox vaccines in low- and middle-income countries.

Conflict, community, and COVID-19: response and implications in Ethiopia.

Community transmission of COVID-19 is currently on the rise in Ethiopia, while availability of diagnostic and treatment services remains limited. Impaired access to essential services is affected by the pandemic's strain on the health system, and as a consequence of the country's public health response. The ongoing conflict in the Tigray Region provides another obstacle to accessing and providing care for the local population; and has displaced large numbers of people both within and outside the country. In this commentary we discuss the impact of the conflict on essential services and argue that a coordinated holistic response is essential to mitigate both short and long-term consequences of the conflict, including increased COVID-19 transmission, acute malnutrition, disruption of education services, displacement of people, and food insecurities. We highlight the important role of community engagement in prevention and early detection of these challenges, and the need for comprehensive interventions in the region.

The impact of COVID-19 on international development aid and health systems strengthening in low-income countries.

Health systems play a critical role in providing services that aim to improve, promote, restore, or maintain the health of communities. Unfortunately, health systems in low-income countries are fragile, having an adverse effect on the health of the population. Whereas international development aid remains crucial in strengthening health systems in low-income countries (LICs), COVID-19 has induced changes in the dynamics in the availability, provision and access to international development aid. These changes have aggravated the already weak health systems of LICs. Understanding the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the distribution of international development aid and how these effects impacted on the quality of the health systems in response to the outbreak is critical to improving the health of populations in LICs. This article discusses the impact of the challenges faced by LICs in the context of international development aid needed for the development of health systems.

Curbing antimicrobial resistance in post-COVID Africa: Challenges, actions and recommendations.

Background: Antimicrobial self-medication and use have significantly increased in the COVID-19 era-increasing antibiotic consumption and resulting in a high prevalence of antimicrobial resistance in Africa (AMR). We conducted a narrative review to investigate challenges associated with curbing AMR in a post-COVID-19 setting in Africa, suggesting practical measures applicable for policy-informed implementation. Method: A narrative review was performed to pinpoint AMR challenges and actions on the African continent. A comprehensive search was conducted in the scientific databases that include PubMed, PubMed Central and Google Scholar using predetermined search terms. Results: The emergence of the COVID-19 outbreak has added to the challenges of tackling AMR on the continent, which has jeopardized AMR interventions' hard-won gains. Identified challenges have been Health systems disruption, Irrational Antimicrobial Use, Weak Antimicrobials Regulatory Ecosystem, Inefficient Population Infection Prevention, and Control Practices, Inadequate access to Health Services and data challenge on AMR surveillance. Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic fueled AMR in Africa. There is a need for AMR control post-COVID, such as measures for ongoing antimicrobial stewardship and good infection control practices. Further, curbing AMR requires rigorous regulatory enforcement and efficient AMR Surveillance. There should be a body to raise AMR awareness among the population. Research, Innovation and Technology could play an essential role supported by capacity building and global partnership.

COVID-19 AND INSECURITY IN NORTHERN NIGERIA.

Northern Nigeria is currently facing a twin crisis of both COVID-19 and insecurity. They have made it difficult for the people to follow government containment efforts to control the pandemic and also have impacted on the socioeconomic and health aspects of the society. We have discussed on the impact of insecurity amid COVID-19 in Northern Nigeria. It is opined that if the insecurity in Northern Nigeria is not tackled, it will expose the region to more escalation of cases and deaths. Thus, it is recommended that proactive steps should be implemented by all stakeholders concerned to tackle insecurity, particularly the government to revive the security architecture, provide an environment for training and retraining of all security personnel and enhancing intelligence gathering to pave the way for resolving this issue.

The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic: Vaccination challenges in Sudan.

The first COVID-19 case in Sudan was announced on March 13th, 2020. 1835 deaths were recorded as of February 7th, 2021. 800,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine were allocated to Sudan through COVAX in March 2021. However, multiple challenges exist in vaccinating the Sudanese population, ranging from an inadequate cold chain system to low acceptance rates of COVID-19 vaccination among the Sudanese population. Economic crises, high inflation rates and long-standing economic sanctions have also negatively impacted the healthcare system in Sudan as a result of deprivation of access to research and development funding.

Early marriage and teenage pregnancy: The unspoken consequences of COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria.

Early marriage and its sad consequences to the girl child and socio-economic development of the nation has been an age-long issue being advocated against in many parts of Nigeria. At the onset of COVID-19, the teeming efforts to curb this issue almost got jeopardized with harsh economic situations in many households due to the lockdown and the willingness to marry off their girls to reduce this burden. Closure of schools and cases of sexual gender based violence also impacted the prevalence of early marriage during the pandemic in Nigeria. We also argue in this commentary that the pandemic has so much impacted on programs aimed at ending early marriage in the nation. Therefore, if serious and concerted efforts are not taken by relevant stakeholders, more girls will be at risk of early marriage and teenage pregnancy with their related health consequences. They will also be left behind in fulfilling their potentials and their aspirations cut off with early marriage, thus sustainable development cannot be achieved.