Rich countries urged to pay $16 billion up front for WHO’s COVID plan

Feb 9 2022

On Wednesday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) urged rich countries to pay their fair share of the money needed to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic by contributing $16 billion urgently.WHO said the rapid injection of cash into its Access to COVID Tools Accelerator could finish off the virus as a global health emergency this year.

ACT-A, which is led by WHO, aims to develop, produce and distribute resources to tackle the pandemic. These include everything from tests, treatments, vaccines and protective equipment. ACT-A also led to the development of the Covax facility, which is designed to ensure that poorer counties could access vaccines, current and eventual. This follows the correct, and unfortunate, prediction that richer nations would hoard doses. Covax delivered its billionth vaccine dose in mid-January.

$23.4 billion is needed for ACT-A’s programme for the year October 2021-September 2022. However, only $800 million has been raised so far. The scheme is therefore requiring $16 billion up front from wealthy nations to close the immediate gap, with the rest to be self-funded by middle-income countries. In a statement, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the rapid spread of the Omicron variant made it more urgent to ensure tests, treatments and vaccines are distributed equally.

He highlighted how if higher-income countries pay their fair share of the ACT-Accelerator costs, the partnership can support low and middle income countries to overcome low COVID vaccination levels, weak testing and medicine shortages. With just 0.4% of the 4.7 billion COVID tests administered globally during the pandemic having been used in low-income countries, only 10% of people in those nations have received at least one dose of the jab.

The vast inequity, WHO said, is costing lives and hurting economies, but also risking the emergence of new variants which could rob current tools of their effectiveness and set highly-vaccinated populations back months.

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Chimpanzees applying medicine to each other’s wounds for the first time

Feb 8 2022

For the first time in the study of animal behaviours, chimpanzees have been observed capturing insects and applying them to their own wounds as well as the wounds of others as possible medication.

The behaviour of one animal applying medication to the wounds of other animals has never been seen before. It may be a sign of helpful tendencies in the primates similar to empathy in humans.

Researchers witnessed multiple instances of this behaviour within a community of about 45 chimpanzees at the Loango National Park in Gabon as part of the Ozouga Chimpanzee Project.

The findings were published Monday in the journal Current Biology, with the project aiming to study relationships and interactions between chimps. Self-medication is not a new behaviour, as animals such as bears, elephants and even bees have been observed to do so.

Our two closest living relatives, chimpanzees and bonobos, swallow leaves of plants with anthelmintic (anti parasitic) properties and chew bitter leaves that have chemical properties to kill intestinal parasites.

But this is the first recorded instance of animals applying other animal matter – insects – to open wounds. This shows they have an understanding of their food species but probably also the characteristics of other animal species that help to act against injuries.

Two chimpanzees, Suzee and her son Sia, were seen doing this in 2019. It continued to happen within the chimpanzee community, with the team cataloguing 76 cases of chimps using insects on their wounds and the wounds of others over 15 months between 2019 and 2021.

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Cyrus Engerer appointed negotiator to extend Brexit pharmaceutical transition period

Feb 8 2022

Labour MEP Cyrus Engerer has been nominated as the negotiator for the Progressive Alliance for Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament. He will be taking on two key derogations relating to the importation and sale of British medicinals in Malta, Ireland and Cyprus.

The derogations are crucial for Malta since pharmaceuticals produced in the UK can no longer be imported and sold in the European Union following the end of the transition period after Brexit.

Engerer will be engaging in the derogations which will guarantee for a longer temporary period which Malta, and the two other nations, can use not to suffer from a shortage of medicines. Malta, Ireland and Cyprus have been historically reliant on the supply of medicines produced in the UK.

Engerer said that he has stressed time and time again that each and every citizen must be able to access the medicines they know, are used to and trust at an affordable price. ‘Therefore, we cannot let our citizens bear the brunt of the consequences of Brexit’ he said.

‘We are a part of this European Union, and like any other Member State, we have the right to access affordable medicines whenever the need arises’ continued Engerer, pledging to continue woking directly with his counterparts in the other political groups to find a suitable compromise.

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Malta’s fitness community celebrated at Bulletproof Culture’s Roll of Honours

Feb 8 2022

Over the years, Malta’s fitness community has developed from nothing into a strong and ever-growing family which aims to push the island’s mentality to the next level.

In 2020, Malta’s fitness community platform Bulletproof Culture was founded with the aim to motivate, educate and inspire individuals towards a healthier, fitter & more sustainable lifestyle.

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This year, Bulletproof took it to a whole new level by announcing their Roll of Honours, with 13 curated Honours to celebrate the blood, sweat and tears of all the local athletes.

‘Finally, after a successful year for fitness in Malta it is time to honour all our achievements, with 10 individual based and 3 collective based fitness awards’ the description reads.

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The awards seek to reward everyone from 60+ year old veterans to 14 and younger juniors, from the rising star of the year to Malta’s most inspiring person of 2021. Coaches, upcoming rising stars, the most improved persons and underrated athletes will also have a shot at the award.

Fitness events, fitness facilities and sports teams will also be given the limelight they truly deserve, highlighting how Malta has given its sportspersons all the possibility and welcome they needed. With judges boasting years of experience, the public vote will contribute 70% to the results.

The star-studded line-up has local spectaculars including Jake Vella, Tommy Wallbank, Claire Azzopardi, Neil Agius, Haley Bugeja, the late Victor Calvagna and a whole pantheon of individuals we have all been amazed by one time or another.

It just goes to show that talent, skill and determination are not scarce on the island and picking the winners of the awards is truly a difficult decision. Whoever the winners are, the awards still highlight all of these champions’ achievements.

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The final night special will be broadcasted on One TV on the 9th of February, expanding the awareness to far beyond the fitness community in order to highlight the hard work these athletes and groups have underwent.

You can find out about the awards here.

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