5-4 | The COVID-19 vaccine Humanitarian Buffer (HB) is failing its mission to support people hit by the pandemic and struggling to access immunisation, says Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). The HB is part of the COVAX mechanism*, whose aim is to assist groups of people who do not have access to COVID-19 vaccination in situations of humanitarian emergency. However, MSF’s recent experience in northern Syria has highlighted the system’s limitations and ultimate failure to fulfil its purpose.
3-3 | As hundreds of thousands of people are forced to escape, MSF is working on setting up emergency response activities in Ukraine and deploying teams in Poland, Moldova, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. Teams are also ready to respond in Russia and Belarus. As the conflict continues in Ukraine, MSF is dispatching teams to Poland, Moldova, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia to assess the needs of people crossing borders and respond to humanitarian needs. Teams are also present in Belarus and Russia ready to provide humanitarian assistance.
2-17 | CAPE TOWN - A vaccination support programme developed by MSF in Khayelitsha, South Africa, in partnership with the Western Cape Department of Health (WCDoH), has shown that it is possible to target and protect individuals with comorbidities that increase the risk of severe disease and death from COVID-19.
2-17 | CAPE TOWN - A vaccination support programme developed by MSF in Khayelitsha, South Africa, in partnership with the Western Cape Department of Health (WCDoH), has shown that it is possible to target and protect individuals with comorbidities that increase the risk of severe disease and death from COVID-19.
1-27 | Nine Médecins sans frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF) staff members were detained by the Sudanese authorities in the capital Khartoum on the evening of 24 January, before being released the following morning.