HE Vice President of the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire Tiemoko Meyliet Kone met with HE Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Cote d’Ivoire Mubarak bin Hussein Al Marri.

During the meeting, the two sides discussed bilateral cooperation relations.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of The State of Qatar.

HE Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Integration and Ivorians Abroad of the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire Kacou Houadja Leon Adom met with HE Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Cote d’Ivoire Mubarak bin Hussein Al Marri in Abidjan.

During the meeting, the two sides discussed bilateral cooperation relations.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of The State of Qatar.

During her trip to Angola, Administrator Samantha Power announced expanding partnerships that reflect the deepening relationship between the United States and Angola. 

At Angola’s Instituto Nacional de Investigação em Saúde (National Health Research Institute) Administrator Power announced that USAID-led U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) is expanding geographic coverage for malaria prevention and control activities in Angola, to include the province of Moxico. This provides financial and technical assistance that enables the Government of the Republic of Angola to deploy life-saving interventions proven to fight malaria. Angola is highly vulnerable to malaria, and its prevalence is particularly high in Moxico, the country’s largest province. The expansion of PMI’s geographic coverage to Moxico comes with a strong commitment from the Government of the Republic of Angola to ensure that key gaps in malaria prevention and treatment are addressed in other areas of the country. PMI’s collaboration with Angola has contributed to a 29 percent reduction in deaths from malaria since 2020. 

Since 2006, PMI has invested $415 million in Angola, including the procurement and delivery of insecticide-treated nets as well as commodities used for malaria diagnosis and treatment, health worker training, and investments in entomological monitoring and supply chain management.

In Benguela, Administrator Power launched an expansion of the USAID project Women in Angolan Farming, a public-private partnership to strengthen livelihoods and increase food security in rural communities by empowering women to be leaders in the agricultural sector. Women in Angola Farming is currently active in six provinces in Angola, and the new funding will allow the program to expand into four additional provinces: Cuando Cubango, Benguela, Huambo, and Bié. Benguela, Huambo, and Bié provinces are part of the Lobito Corridor, an area being developed to connect the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia to regional and global trade markets via railways to the Port of Lobito.

More than 20,000 women smallholder farmers will benefit from this project, not only by being able to increase their agricultural output, but also through increased access to national identity cards, birth certificates, bank and mobile money accounts, basic literacy, and land tenure, all of which are critical for wider and gender equitable rural development. 

Administrator Power also launched the start of a new partnership with the Ministry of Transport to increase private investment in infrastructure. The partnership will build capacity to replicate the success of the Lobito Atlantic Rail concession of December 2022 and the Lobito Port concession of March 2024, through additional open, transparent, and competitive procurements in infrastructure. 

The new partnership between the USAID and the Angolan Ministry of Transport supports the Government of Angola’s goal of facilitating similar procurements that can generate private investment in Angola’s infrastructure in Lobito and across the country, without having to rely on burdensome debt finance. These investments will create thousands of jobs and provide new economic opportunities for Angolans in the Corridor and beyond.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

£7.4 million funding from UK will make malaria drugs and tests accessible for countries around the world; over 50 million people will have access to the life-saving drugs and tests by 2027; UK-Indian developed vaccines being rolled out to Sierra Leone, Liberia and Benin.

The UK government will improve access to malaria drugs to help tackle one of the biggest killers of children in sub-Saharan Africa, it has been announced today (25 April).

More than 600,000 people worldwide die every year from malaria, which is preventable and treatable. The £7.4 million support for MedAccess will be used to negotiate lower prices for vital malaria drugs and diagnostic tests for people in countries affected by the disease.

The funding brings total UK support to MedAccess to £17.4 million, which will help 1 million people access new diagnostic tests and 120 million patients to receive anti-malarial treatments.

MedAccess guarantees sales volumes of drugs in markets where demand is uncertain so manufacturers can commit to affordable prices and stable supply. In return, manufacturers receive assurance that they will be paid even if the demand doesn’t materialise.

In 3 years, it is expected that more than 50 million people will have access to drugs and other items.

The announcement comes on the World Health Organisation’s World Malaria Day, which aims to keep the disease high on the political agenda, mobilise additional resources, and empower communities.

Deputy Foreign Secretary and Minister for Development and Africa, Andrew Mitchell, said:

“Thanks to British science, we now have life-saving malaria vaccines which will protect millions of people.”

“But we also need to make sure we are making drugs available at the best possible price to the countries that most need them. Deaths from malaria are entirely preventable and the UK’s support for MedAccess will ensure that countries can afford to offer people the best protection against the disease.”

It has also been announced that Sierra Leone, Liberia and Benin will begin their first roll out of the UK-Indian developed RTS,S vaccine, marking a significant milestone in ending malaria.

Collaboration between British scientists and Indian manufacturers resulted in 2 essential malaria vaccines being developed: RTS,S and R21. These have been used in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi, with 2 million children vaccinated since 2019, and in January, Cameroon became the first country to give the vaccines to children routinely.

A total of 22 countries are due to roll out the vaccine. Gavi, which is funded by the UK, is aiming to immunise more than 6 million children from malaria by the end of 2025.

UK funding helps MedAccess to reduce the costs of a range of innovative health products for HIV, TB and malaria, meaning that UK support for organisation like Gavi and the Global Fund will go further as they benefit from lower prices for products.

Chief Executive Officer for MedAccess, Michael Anderson, said:

“We are deeply grateful for FCDO’s continued support, which enables MedAccess to improve access to products for HIV, TB, and malaria in support of Global Fund programmes.”

“MedAccess will continue to use innovative financial tools to reduce the cost of diagnosis, prevention and treatment, improving value for money while improving patient access. We are glad to announce this renewed funding on World Malaria Day, an important moment for global stakeholders to come together with a common ambition to accelerate malaria prevention and control.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.