http://www.irinnews.org/Updated everydayen-gbSat, 25 May 2013 07:32:56 GMTFri, 24 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>DUBAI 24 May 2013 (IRIN) - Getting humanitarian supplies into conflict zones like Syria is no mean feat, often requiring negotiations with warring parties, braving insecurity and facing repeated delays and logistical challenges.Fri, 24 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98087/How-To-Get-medical-aid-kits-to-Aleppo-SyriaDUBAI 24 May 2013 (IRIN) - Getting humanitarian supplies into conflict zones like Syria is no mean feat, often requiring negotiations with warring parties, braving insecurity and facing repeated delays and logistical challenges.]]>Fri, 24 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>MANILA 24 May 2013 (IRIN) - Varied implementation of a Department of Health (DOH) policy advocating health facility-based delivery under the care of a skilled birth attendant (SBA) has health officials and advocates worried that the policy may be doing more harm than good.Fri, 24 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98091/Mixed-messages-on-home-deliveries-in-PhilippinesMANILA 24 May 2013 (IRIN) - Varied implementation of a Department of Health (DOH) policy advocating health facility-based delivery under the care of a skilled birth attendant (SBA) has health officials and advocates worried that the policy may be doing more harm than good.]]>Wed, 22 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>NIAMEY 22 May 2013 (IRIN) - Cholera has struck 248 people in Ayorou in the Tillabéry Region of northwestern Niger, killing six, two of them Malian refugees.Wed, 22 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98078/Containing-cholera-in-NigerNIAMEY 22 May 2013 (IRIN) - Cholera has struck 248 people in Ayorou in the Tillabéry Region of northwestern Niger, killing six, two of them Malian refugees.]]>Wed, 22 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>NAIROBI 22 May 2013 (IRIN) - Over one million people in Somalia are currently food insecure, according to a May report by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWSNET). This number is a significant drop from the 3.7 million considered food insecure in mid-2011.Wed, 22 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98082/Somalia-beyond-the-famineNAIROBI 22 May 2013 (IRIN) - Over one million people in Somalia are currently food insecure, according to a May report by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWSNET). This number is a significant drop from the 3.7 million considered food insecure in mid-2011.]]>Mon, 20 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>KAMPALA 20 May 2013 (IRIN) - Gaps in the healthcare system in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are hampering the fight against malaria, a leading killer of children, say experts.Mon, 20 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98069/Malaria-overstretching-healthcare-in-DRCKAMPALA 20 May 2013 (IRIN) - Gaps in the healthcare system in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are hampering the fight against malaria, a leading killer of children, say experts.]]>Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>OUAGADOUGOU 17 May 2013 (IRIN) - Earlier this year Denis Ouedraogo, a tailor living in the Tampouy neighbourhood just north of Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou, connected his mud-walled home to the water network for the first time. “Even without electricity, having enough water can make you happy,” he said.Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98054/Making-WASH-work-in-Burkina-Faso-s-citiesOUAGADOUGOU 17 May 2013 (IRIN) - Earlier this year Denis Ouedraogo, a tailor living in the Tampouy neighbourhood just north of Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou, connected his mud-walled home to the water network for the first time. “Even without electricity, having enough water can make you happy,” he said.]]>Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>LAHORE/DUBAI 17 May 2013 (IRIN) - Hamza Mazhar, a 35-year-old teacher from Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore, says he never wants to see the inside of a government hospital again.Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98055/Challenges-to-improving-health-care-in-PakistanLAHORE/DUBAI 17 May 2013 (IRIN) - Hamza Mazhar, a 35-year-old teacher from Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore, says he never wants to see the inside of a government hospital again.]]>Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>JOHANNESBURG 17 May 2013 (IRIN) - A month after the Indian Ocean tsunami struck in December 2004, affecting millions, 168 countries signed on to a 10-year plan to make the world safer from natural hazards. Yet the plan, the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) 2005-2015, focused primarily on “what to do to prevent disasters, but not enough on how to implement it,” says Neil McFarlane, chief coordinator and head of all regional programmes at the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR).Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98058/The-making-of-the-Hyogo2-disaster-prevention-frameworkJOHANNESBURG 17 May 2013 (IRIN) - A month after the Indian Ocean tsunami struck in December 2004, affecting millions, 168 countries signed on to a 10-year plan to make the world safer from natural hazards. Yet the plan, the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) 2005-2015, focused primarily on “what to do to prevent disasters, but not enough on how to implement it,” says Neil McFarlane, chief coordinator and head of all regional programmes at the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR).]]>Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>LONDON 14 May 2013 (IRIN) - Vaccine scares have emerged as a major challenge to global efforts to eliminate preventable diseases, with rumours and conspiracy theories proliferating faster than health authorities can respond to them. Now researchers, led by Heidi Larson of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, are developing a tool to identify the first signs of these negative reports.Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98030/Tracking-vaccine-scaresLONDON 14 May 2013 (IRIN) - Vaccine scares have emerged as a major challenge to global efforts to eliminate preventable diseases, with rumours and conspiracy theories proliferating faster than health authorities can respond to them. Now researchers, led by Heidi Larson of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, are developing a tool to identify the first signs of these negative reports.]]>Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>KAMPALA 14 May 2013 (IRIN) - Ugandan children are going unimmunized as the country grapples with persistent and widespread vaccine shortages, the result of insufficient funds and inefficient procurement and supply systems, officials say.Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98033/Uganda-grapples-with-paediatric-vaccine-shortagesKAMPALA 14 May 2013 (IRIN) - Ugandan children are going unimmunized as the country grapples with persistent and widespread vaccine shortages, the result of insufficient funds and inefficient procurement and supply systems, officials say.]]>Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>LAHORE 10 May 2013 (IRIN) - On the frontline in the fight against dengue fever in Lahore, Pakistan’s second largest city, the authorities have a sharp eye for spare car tyres.Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98010/Marshalling-smartphones-gravediggers-to-fight-dengue-in-PakistanLAHORE 10 May 2013 (IRIN) - On the frontline in the fight against dengue fever in Lahore, Pakistan’s second largest city, the authorities have a sharp eye for spare car tyres.]]>Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>BISSAU/DAKAR 09 May 2013 (IRIN) - The World Food Programme (WFP) has not received the money it needs to run basic nutrition and food security schemes in Guinea-Bissau, leaving projects in jeopardy or at a standstill.Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98004/Hunger-projects-stalled-in-Guinea-BissauBISSAU/DAKAR 09 May 2013 (IRIN) - The World Food Programme (WFP) has not received the money it needs to run basic nutrition and food security schemes in Guinea-Bissau, leaving projects in jeopardy or at a standstill.]]>Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>NAIROBI 09 May 2013 (IRIN) - The UN World Health Organization has accepted the first semi-synthetic version of artemisinin, the key ingredient for malaria treatment globally, for use in the manufacture of drugs, boosting hopes that more people will have access to life-saving medication.Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98006/Semi-synthetic-artemisinin-promises-to-boost-global-malaria-gainsNAIROBI 09 May 2013 (IRIN) - The UN World Health Organization has accepted the first semi-synthetic version of artemisinin, the key ingredient for malaria treatment globally, for use in the manufacture of drugs, boosting hopes that more people will have access to life-saving medication.]]>Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>NIZIP 08 May 2013 (IRIN) - Turkey's camps for Syrian refugees are, by many measures, a model of humanitarian assistance. But one important detail appears to have been overlooked: According to aid workers, nowhere in Turkey's 17 refugee camps can survivors of sexual violence find the level of specialized psychosocial support experts say they so desperately need.Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97953/Analysis-Towards-increased-services-for-Syrian-survivors-of-sexual-violenceNIZIP 08 May 2013 (IRIN) - Turkey's camps for Syrian refugees are, by many measures, a model of humanitarian assistance. But one important detail appears to have been overlooked: According to aid workers, nowhere in Turkey's 17 refugee camps can survivors of sexual violence find the level of specialized psychosocial support experts say they so desperately need.]]>Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>NAIROBI 08 May 2013 (IRIN) - We’ve read the stories: From bedridden patients sending text messages to their health workers, to young people receiving HIV prevention messages via SMS, the mobile phone seems to have morphed from communications device to essential life-saver. But is the evidence there yet that mHealth is an effective health delivery intervention for the developing world?Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/98001/Analysis-Sending-the-right-message-on-mHealthNAIROBI 08 May 2013 (IRIN) - We’ve read the stories: From bedridden patients sending text messages to their health workers, to young people receiving HIV prevention messages via SMS, the mobile phone seems to have morphed from communications device to essential life-saver. But is the evidence there yet that mHealth is an effective health delivery intervention for the developing world?]]>Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>JOHANNESBURG 07 May 2013 (IRIN) - A tiny, rapidly breeding cyanide-munching insect, dubbed a “super-fly” by scientists, is threatening the food security of millions of Africans.Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97986/Super-fly-threatens-Rambo-cassava-food-securityJOHANNESBURG 07 May 2013 (IRIN) - A tiny, rapidly breeding cyanide-munching insect, dubbed a “super-fly” by scientists, is threatening the food security of millions of Africans.]]>Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>BAGHDAD/DUBAI 07 May 2013 (IRIN) - The number of Iraqis without secure access to food dropped by more than a quarter of a million people between 2007 and 2011, part of a generally positive trend of increasing food security in Iraq over the last decade.Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97991/Less-dependent-on-food-rationsBAGHDAD/DUBAI 07 May 2013 (IRIN) - The number of Iraqis without secure access to food dropped by more than a quarter of a million people between 2007 and 2011, part of a generally positive trend of increasing food security in Iraq over the last decade.]]>Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>HARARE 07 May 2013 (IRIN) - Inadequate funding and limited resources are frustrating Zimbabwe’s efforts to develop plans to deal with the impact of climate change, says a government progress report.Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97994/Zimbabwe-short-on-climate-change-fundsHARARE 07 May 2013 (IRIN) - Inadequate funding and limited resources are frustrating Zimbabwe’s efforts to develop plans to deal with the impact of climate change, says a government progress report.]]>Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>RENK-UPPER NILE STATE 06 May 2013 (IRIN) - Years ago, Mary Venerato Laki fled conflict in South Sudan, moving north to Sudan, where she worked as a teacher for 42 years. But after a January 2011 referendum paved the way for South Sudan's independence, Mary, now a 60-year-old widow and sole guardian of four nieces, decided to move back home.Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97980/Mary-Venerato-Laki-South-Sudan-returnee-quot-We-want-to-go-to-our-own-homeland-quotRENK-UPPER NILE STATE 06 May 2013 (IRIN) - Years ago, Mary Venerato Laki fled conflict in South Sudan, moving north to Sudan, where she worked as a teacher for 42 years. But after a January 2011 referendum paved the way for South Sudan's independence, Mary, now a 60-year-old widow and sole guardian of four nieces, decided to move back home.]]>Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>GAO/BAMAKO 06 May 2013 (IRIN) - During the rebel takeover of northern Mali in April 2012, many women said they were subjected to rape or sexual assault. Since then, little or no support has come through for these women, say aid workers.Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97983/Little-support-no-justice-for-Mali-rape-survivorsGAO/BAMAKO 06 May 2013 (IRIN) - During the rebel takeover of northern Mali in April 2012, many women said they were subjected to rape or sexual assault. Since then, little or no support has come through for these women, say aid workers.]]>Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>KABUL 02 May 2013 (IRIN) - As Asia’s poorest country and the deadliest for aid workers, rugged Afghanistan offers a considerable challenge to humanitarian work.Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97936/Innovative-ICT-helps-aid-workers-in-AfghanistanKABUL 02 May 2013 (IRIN) - As Asia’s poorest country and the deadliest for aid workers, rugged Afghanistan offers a considerable challenge to humanitarian work.]]>Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>NAIROBI 02 May 2013 (IRIN) - Food security in South Sudan is deteriorating in the face of ongoing conflict, high food prices, and the large-scale return of refugee and internally displaced families.Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97957/Conflict-and-returnees-strain-South-Sudan-food-securityNAIROBI 02 May 2013 (IRIN) - Food security in South Sudan is deteriorating in the face of ongoing conflict, high food prices, and the large-scale return of refugee and internally displaced families.]]>Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>KATANGA 02 May 2013 (IRIN) - Tens of thousands of displaced people in the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) Katanga Province have received little or no humanitarian aid in the months since having fled ongoing conflict.Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97963/Conflict-cuts-off-civilians-in-DRC-apos-s-KatangaKATANGA 02 May 2013 (IRIN) - Tens of thousands of displaced people in the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) Katanga Province have received little or no humanitarian aid in the months since having fled ongoing conflict.]]>Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>DUBAI 02 May 2013 (IRIN) - Of all the areas of Iraq’s development that were affected by the US-led invasion 10 years ago, healthcare has probably taken the biggest hit. And much of the damage incurred in the first few years of the invasion continues to have an impact on health indicators today.Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97964/War-leaves-lasting-impact-on-healthcareDUBAI 02 May 2013 (IRIN) - Of all the areas of Iraq’s development that were affected by the US-led invasion 10 years ago, healthcare has probably taken the biggest hit. And much of the damage incurred in the first few years of the invasion continues to have an impact on health indicators today.]]>Wed, 01 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT]]>LONDON 01 May 2013 (IRIN) - When Iyabo Dolarin’s trachoma mapping team conducts surveys in Nigeria’s Kaduna State, they begin with a ritual: They go to the centre of the community and spin a bottle on the ground to determine which household will first be checked for signs of this painful and disabling disease.Wed, 01 May 2013 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.irinnews.org/Report/97948/Mapping-the-world-s-trachoma-hotspotsLONDON 01 May 2013 (IRIN) - When Iyabo Dolarin’s trachoma mapping team conducts surveys in Nigeria’s Kaduna State, they begin with a ritual: They go to the centre of the community and spin a bottle on the ground to determine which household will first be checked for signs of this painful and disabling disease.]]>