The number of people going hungry in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua has nearly quadrupled in the last two years, the United Nations said on Tuesday, as Central America has been battered by an economic crisis. New data released by the U.N.’s World Food Program showed nearly 8 million people …
your ad hereWorld Leaders Lead Discussion on Global COVID-19 Recovery
The European Union and the World Health Organization teamed with the international advocacy organization Global Citizen on Tuesday to host a virtual panel discussion on global recovery of the COVID-19 pandemic.The webcast included leaders from the United States and the African Union, as well as actors and musicians seeking to solicit …
your ad hereUS Envoy Urges Nations to Look at Security Implications of Climate Change
U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry urged the U.N. Security Council Tuesday to start treating the climate crisis like the “urgent security threat” that it is.“The climate threat is so massive, so multifaceted, that it is impossible to disentangle it from other challenges that the Security Council faces,” Kerry told a virtual …
your ad herePfizer and Moderna Promise Major Boosts in Vaccine Supply
After a disappointingly slow start, drug company executives told Congress Tuesday that they have ironed out startup problems and expect to deliver enough vaccines to immunize 300 million people in the United States by the end of July. Moderna and Pfizer officials told the House Energy and Commerce Committee …
your ad hereGuinea Receives Ebola Vaccine, Neighbors Prepare
West African countries are taking steps to prevent a regional outbreak of Ebola after the deadly virus killed at least five people in Guinea. As Guinea launched an Ebola vaccination drive Tuesday, after an outbreak in the West African nation’s southern Nzérékoré region, its neighbors were also preparing. The last Ebola outbreak in …
your ad hereMalian Linguists Translate Bambara Language into Braille
Malian linguists and braille experts have translated the most widely spoken African language in Mali, Bambara, to braille for the country’s blind. Bambara is spoken and understood by about 15 million Malians, even more than the colonial language, French, making it an important step for blind people. Annie Risemberg profiles a teacher …
your ad hereIn Important Step for Blind People, Malian Linguists Translate Bambara into Braille
Linguists and Braille experts in Mali have translated the country’s most widely spoken African language, Bambara, into Braille for the country’s blind. Bambara is spoken and understood by about 15 million Malians, even more than the colonial French, making it an important step for blind people. Moussa Keita has been at …
your ad hereEbola Expert Calls for Vigilance Amid Outbreaks
With the Ebola virus flaring in the Democratic Republic of Congo and a new outbreak in Guinea, Dr. Jean-Jacques Muyembe Tamfum is worried.“This is a great concern for us, especially since the COVID and Ebola crises are occurring” simultaneously, said Muyembe, who manages DRC’s National Institute of Biomedical Research and …
your ad hereNASA Releases Mars Landing Video: ‘Stuff of Our Dreams’
NASA on Monday released the first high-quality video of a spacecraft landing on Mars, a three-minute trailer showing the enormous orange and white parachute hurtling open and the red dust kicking up as rocket engines lowered the rover to the surface. The quality was so good — and the images so …
your ad hereNASA Supply Ship Arrives at ISS
A NASA unmanned resupply ship docked at the International Space Station (ISS) on Monday carrying more than 3,600 kilograms of research equipment and supplies to the orbiting laboratory. The spacecraft, built by aerospace company Northrop Grumman, was bolted into place on the Earth-facing port of the ISS shortly after arrival. Along …
your ad hereBritain Outlines Lockdown Exit as Vaccines Show ‘Spectacular’ Results
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced plans Monday to begin easing coronavirus lockdown measures. As Henry Ridgwell reports from London, Johnson credited Britain’s rapid vaccination program for allowing the country to begin reopening — amid growing scientific evidence that the vaccines will help to bring the global pandemic under control. Camera: …
your ad hereWHO Chief Tells Rich Nations: ‘Don’t Undermine COVAX’
World Health Organization (WHO) Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus Monday said some of the world’s wealthiest nations are hampering efforts by his agency and its partners to get vaccines to world’s poorest nations.Tedros took part in a joint, virtual news conference, along with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier to talk about the …
your ad hereTanzania President Creeps Toward Acknowledging Presence of COVID-19
Tanzania’s President John Magufuli appears to be acknowledging the problem of COVID-19 in the country, after months of claiming the virus had been defeated through prayer and steam treatments. While not specifically naming the virus, Magufuli on Sunday urged Tanzanians to begin wearing face masks for “respiratory” illnesses that are …
your ad hereInternational Red Cross Issues Emergency Appeal to Prevent New Ebola Outbreak in West Africa
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is appealing for $9.4 million to fund efforts to prevent a new Ebola outbreak from spreading across West Africa. The IFRC said Monday the money will be used to step up “surveillance and community sensitization efforts” in Guinea, …
your ad hereIsrael Shuts Mediterranean Shore After Oil Devastates Coast
Israel closed all its Mediterranean beaches until further notice Sunday, days after an offshore oil spill deposited tons of tar across more than 160 kilometers (100 miles) of coastline in what officials are calling one of the country’s worst ecological disasters.Activists began reporting globs of black tar on Israel’s coast …
your ad hereIsraeli Economy Reopening Following Coronavirus Shutdown
Israel has reopened many schools, malls and gyms that were closed for several weeks. Some venues, however, are open only to those with a “green passport,” a document showing they have received both doses of the coronavirus vaccine. The opening comes amid reports that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine works better than …
your ad hereWeather Disrupts US COVID Vaccine Delivery
Major winter storms, extreme cold and power outages shut down more than 2,000 vaccination sites and delayed delivery of 6 million vaccine doses in all 50 states last week, White House senior adviser Andy Slavitt said in a briefing with reporters Friday.Extreme weather has spread across large swaths of the …
your ad hereArgentine Health Minister Resigns Amid COVID Vaccine Scandal
Argentina’s health minister has resigned after he reportedly gave preferential treatment to those with personal connections when authorizing coronavirus vaccinations.The Associated Press reported that President Alberto Fernández, through his chief of staff, asked for Minister of Health Ginés González García’s resignation Friday after a high-profile local journalist said he had …
your ad hereWHO: ‘Growing Movement Behind Vaccine Equity’
The World Health Organization says it welcomes the recent pledges of coronavirus vaccines from several Western countries to the international health group that will help ensure an equitable allocation of vaccines to countries around the world.“There is a growing movement behind vaccine equity, and I welcome that world leaders are …
your ad hereAfrica’s Coronavirus Death Toll Tops 100,000
The coronavirus death toll on the African continent surpassed 100,000 on Friday, as African countries struggled to obtain vaccines to counteract the pandemic.South Africa alone accounts for nearly half of the confirmed deaths in Africa with 48,859, according to data from the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. The country, which …
your ad hereUS Rejoins Paris Climate Pact
The United States has officially rejoined the Paris Agreement after the Trump administration abandoned the global climate pact saying it was too costly for business. VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports.Produced by: Kimberlyn Weeks …
your ad hereBiden Tours Pfizer Vaccine Production Center
President Joe Biden toured a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing plant Friday afternoon outside Kalamazoo, Michigan, where he touted the safety of the vaccine.”If there’s one message to cut through to everyone in this country, it’s this: The vaccines are safe,” he said, according to NBC News. “Please, for yourself, your …
your ad hereBiden Pledges $4B to WHO’s COVAX Vaccine Cooperative
U.S. President Joe Biden pledged $4 billion to the World Health Organization’s COVAX plan designed to help provide COVID-19 vaccines for 92 low- and middle-income economies around the world. During Friday’s virtual G-7 and the Munich Security Conference, Biden championed U.S. involvement in international alliances. VOA’s Patsy Widakuswara has more. …
your ad hereSouth African Medics to Row Northwest Passage From Canada to Alaska
Two South African medics are swapping their medical gear for oars as they train for a risky 4,000-kilometer (2,500-mile) journey by rowboat through the Arctic Northwest Passage.If the 14-member team finishes the trip — across the north of Canada to Alaska — they will make history, as all attempts to row the icy waters have failed. “Nobody conquers a passage there,” said Leven Brown, the expedition leader. ”The ocean allows you to pass. And …
your ad herePfizer-BioNTech Vaccine Effective at Standard Freezer Temperatures
Pharmaceutical partners Pfizer and BioNTech said Friday a new study the companies conducted indicates their COVID-19 vaccine can remain effective when stored in standard freezers for up to two weeks. In a statement posted on Pfizer’s website, the companies say they have submitted the new data to the U.S. Food and …
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