International organizations

African children

Niger becomes first African nation declared free from river blindness

By / / Good News For Humankind

This major public health triumph has eradicated onchocerciasis, or river blindness, in Niger. The nation is the first in Africa to achieve this World Health Organization-verified status. This victory eliminates a debilitating parasitic disease that had historically pushed populations away from fertile river valleys. The successful, multi-decade effort restores human dignity, unlocks agricultural land for economic development, and provides a powerful blueprint for eliminating other neglected tropical diseases across the continent.

Bacteria under microscope

Cholera vaccination campaign launched in Darfur to protect over 1.8 million people

By / / Good News For Humankind

A vital cholera vaccination campaign has been launched in Darfur, Sudan, aiming to protect over 1.86 million people. This urgent intervention is a major victory for global health, achieved despite the ongoing conflict and insecurity in the region. Humanitarian teams, led by the WHO and UNICEF, overcame immense logistical challenges to deliver millions of vaccine doses. This proactive measure is crucial for halting the spread of the country’s longest-recorded cholera outbreak and safeguarding the lives of highly vulnerable populations, especially young children.

Fly

Kenya declared free of deadly sleeping sickness by WHO

By / / Good News For Humankind

Kenya has officially eliminated sleeping sickness as a public health problem—becoming the tenth country worldwide and the fifth in Africa to reach this milestone. The disease, spread by tsetse flies, causes fever, swollen lymph nodes and, if untreated, severe damage to the nervous system, disrupting sleep and leading to coma or death. Kenya recorded its last local case in 2009 and its last imported cases in 2012 after years of investment in surveillance, diagnostics and fly control. With WHO validation, Kenya’s success strengthens Africa’s collective drive to eliminate sleeping sickness across the continent by 2030.

Poon Hill, Histan Mandali, Nepal

Nepal eliminates rubella as a public health problem

By / / Good News For Humankind

Nepal has officially eliminated rubella, a contagious virus that can cause serious complications for pregnant women and lifelong disabilities for newborns. Once a major public health concern, rubella often led to miscarriage, stillbirth, or congenital rubella syndrome, which can result in heart defects, deafness, and developmental challenges. Thanks to sustained vaccination campaigns and resilient health systems, Nepal has now achieved over 95% coverage since 2012. Verified by the World Health Organization, this milestone means safer pregnancies, healthier children, and greater hope for future generations.

Timor-Leste coastline

World Health Organization certifies Timor-Leste as malaria-free

By / / Good News For Humankind

The World Health Organization certifies malaria elimination when a country has zero indigenous cases for three consecutive years. So far, 47 countries and one territory have earned this status. A Southeast Asian nation, committed to fighting malaria since gaining independence in 2002, has now joined them—demonstrating the impact of sustained, focused efforts to defeat this devastating disease.

Air pollution from a coal plant

Global mercury emissions have fallen 70% over last four decades

By / / Good News For Humankind

Gold mining, coal burning, and cement and nonferrous metals production all release several thousand tons of mercury into the atmosphere every year, leading to tens of thousands of deaths worldwide. However, a team of Chinese scientists from schools in Tianjin, Beijing, Tibet, and Nanjing has found that mercury concentrations in the atmosphere have reduced by a staggering 70% since a peak in the year 2000.

Smiling African children

Over 12 million malaria deaths averted globally since 2000

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Global malaria prevention efforts have paid off in a big way, preventing an estimated 2.2 billion cases and 12.7 million deaths in the last 25 years. In 2023 alone, more than 177 million cases and 1 million deaths were averted, the vast majority of them – 80% of cases and 94% of deaths – in Africa. However, malaria remains a significant public health challenge globally. In 2023, there were an estimated 263 million new malaria cases in 83 countries, up from 252 million in 2022 and 226 million in 2015.

World’s nations back $200 billion a year plan to protect nature

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Global negotiators concluded an extended session of the United Nations biodiversity conference, COP16, by agreeing on how they would contribute a massive $200 billion a year by 2030 to protect the world’s ecosystems. The money includes a plan to raise $20 billion in annual conservation financing for developing nations by 2025, with that number rising to $30 billion annually by 2030, and on details of the Global Biodiversity Framework, which aims at placing 30% of the planet and 30% of degraded ecosystems under protection by 2030.

Two lions

Nearly 20,000 animals seized in global wildlife trafficking crackdown

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Big cats, birds, primates, and pangolins were among the nearly 20,000 animals rescued in a recent global operation against wildlife and forestry traffickers. Led by Interpol and the World Customs Organization, the campaign involved police, customs, border patrol, forestry, and wildlife officials from 138 countries. Six transnational criminal networks suspected of trafficking animals and plants were identified, with 365 arrests made.

Power lines

African nations commit to electricity for 300 million people by 2030

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The heads of 30 African nations have endorsed a plan to provide “reliable, affordable and sustainable” electricity to 300 million people who currently do not have regular access across the continent over the next five years. The plan is expected not only to boost renewable energy and economic opportunity around the continent, but also support new jobs. The World Bank has committed $30 billion to the plan, while the AfDB pledged $10 billion. The Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank pledged $1 billion in financing, while the Islamic Development Bank committed $4.65 billion.