Health

When citizens of Ebola-hit West African countries land in the Chinese city of Guangzhou, they are asked to alight the airplane before other passengers, submit themselves to a health check, and report their health status twice daily for the next 21 days, and they are restricted to staying in just one hotel, Voice of America reports.

So far, 90 people from Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo have had to check in at the Hotel Canton, a state-owned establishment in which a full five floors have been cleared for foreigners, doctors, and security officers perceived to be at risk of Ebola. Their stay is free of charge and guests are able to travel around the city as they please, but they must carry a GPS-enabled mobile phone at all times.

For most of the world outside West Africa, nervousness about Ebola has receded, and large-scale measures to protect public health are generally met with skepticism. Still, in Guangzhou, which lies just 25 km (15 miles) from the global epicenter of the 2002 SARS outbreak that killed more than 8,000 people, it’s perhaps understandable that local officials are cautious.

But the concern of Guangzhou bureaucrats may have more to do with the racial makeup of the part of town referred to by some as “Little Africa,” or “Chocolate City”—a 10-square-kilometer (4-square-mile) district that is home to an estimated 16,000 Africans, by some estimates the largest African population in Asia.

A high population of Africans is of course no reason to start worrying about an Ebola outbreak, but for a country as unfamiliar with immigrants as China (it gives out just 248 green cards per year, compared with 50,000 issued by the US green card lottery alone), and with its history of holding other foreigners at bay, the measures are unfortunately not surprising.

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Ngwa Bertrand

26.Nov.2014

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In 2013, in Central and West Africa, the Swiss agro-foods company, Nestlé, lowered salt content in all its food products by 2.69% relative to 2012. Some of these products, particularly Maggi bouillon cubes, were also enriched with iron. Nestlé’s Cameroonian subsidiary made this announcement on November 14, 2014 during the celebration of World Diabetes Day.

According to the company, “last year, the company committed to reducing salt in all its brands to support the WHO’s goal of a maximum daily allowance of sodium of 5g by 2025”. In the spirit of this commitment, “Nestlé has already improved over 20 of its brands such as Maggi to reduce salt content in its food products to make them healthier for consumers.” By 2016, salt, sugar and saturated fat content will be reduced by 10%.

In Cameroon, the supply hub for the Central African region, the Swiss agro-foods company produces and sells mostly Maggi bouillon cubes, which represent 90% of the Bonabéri factory’s production. Maggi bouillon cubes officially generate 5 billion FCFA in sales across the six CEMAC countries.

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Ngwa Bertrand

25.Nov.2014

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Ngwa Bertrand

22.Nov.2014

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Teams of investigators in Mali have been tracing health workers and scouring cities for people who could have been exposed to the deadly virus. The virus has been most devastating in the West African countries of Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea, which have seen the most fatalities with 2,964, 1,250 and 1,192 deaths respectively, the WHO said.Ebola is a form of hemorrhagic fever whose symptoms are diarrhea, vomiting, and bleeding. The virus spreads through direct contact with infected blood, feces, or sweat. It can be also spread through sexual contact or the unprotected handling of contaminated corpses.

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Ngwa Bertrand

21.Nov.2014

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Rita Akana

Andre Mama Fouda, Minister of Public Health revealed on Thursday that Cameroon has 4.5 million people who are carriers of the Hepatitis B and C viruses. The Minister hinted that the figures are six times more than those with the HIV virus. The World Health Organization has warned that Cameroon needs to step up its game aimed at combating the virus. It is vital to include in this report that the CPDM government started a campaign in January 2013 that was geared towards preventing Cameroonians from contracting the Hepatitis virus.

 

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Ngwa Bertrand

21.Nov.2014

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The United Nations (UN) says women are more at risk of Ebola infection because of their special roles in the countries affected by the disease. “There are some reports that in the countries affected by the Ebola outbreak…women are particularly at risk. Partly because of their role as healers, partly because of their role as carers in the home and partly because also they are most involved in household activities and this puts them at particular risk of getting infected,” said the UN’s Special Envoy on Ebola David Nabarro on Friday. According to reports, the deadly virus also poses serious threats to the health of pregnant women in most African countries, which lack adequate sanitary health care facilities. The Ebola epidemic has so far claimed the lives of 5,459 people all around the world, while more than 15,351 people have been infected, the World Health Organization announced on Friday.

 

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Ngwa Bertrand

21.Nov.2014

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