Author: Laura Grant
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Of the 65 Nobel prizes women have won, half were awarded in past 20 years
Since 1901, only 65 prizes have been awarded to women, 6.5% of the 1,000 awarded in total. In 2023, four of the 11 winners were women, making it one of the best years for women in history of the Nobel prize. The peace prize has been awarded to 19 women, three of them Africans: Kenyan…
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Death trap: Timeline of the Life Esidimeni tragedy
Life Esidimeni, a psychiatric hospital, had been contracted for 30 years by the Gauteng department of health for the long-term, specialised care of mental healthcare patients. Despite warnings from experts, the department ended the contract in September 2015. Its aim was to deinstitutionalise the patients and save costs by moving them to non-profit organisations. What…
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Cholera surges in Africa: Over 110,000 cases in 5 months
More than 110,000 cases of cholera were reported in Africa in the first five months of the year. This is half of the total reported in 2023 and more than all the cases in 2022. Last year, a cholera outbreak in South Africa claimed the lives of 47 people. The disease spread quickly in areas…
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Cholera outbreaks highlight the need for Africa to make its own vaccines
There is a worldwide shortage of cholera vaccines, and only one WHO-approved producer in the world, EuBiologics in South Korea. In February 2024, Doctors Without Borders, a medical humanitarian organisation, reported that the global cholera vaccine stockpile had been exhausted. Already in October 2022 a decision was made to temporarily reduce the dosage of vaccine…