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The development and deployment of the recent malaria vaccine is an opportunity to strengthen the weak health systems in many sub-Saharan African countries

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Introduction: Knowledge of HIV and other STIs and their complications and attitude toward sexual health are important in planning preventive and treatment strategies. Although STIs pose serious risks to health security especially to women, there is a dearth of literature quantifying the knowledge of HIV and STIs among women in Nigeria. The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge of HIV and other STIs and its association with the choice of place of delivery among urban women in south west Nigeria.Methodology: National Demographic Survey (DHS) use largely standardized questionnaires and methodologies and cover a range of topics. The surveys are nationally representative and include men and women aged 15–49 years old and children under the age of 5 years residing in non-institutional settings. The 2018 NDHS survey data for women only was used for this study. The outcome variable was knowledge of HIV and other sexually transmitted infection while the explanatory variable was location of most recent childbirth. Following descriptive analysis was conducted using proportions and frequency. Chi-square (χ2) test and binary logistic regression analysis were conducted to establish association between variables. Data were analysed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.Result: Four thousand six hundred and four (4604) women were surveyed, 33.1% were between 30 – 39 years of age with a mean age of 34.4±9.4, 50.9% had secondary education, 58.6% were married, 43.8% had 1 – 3 children, 47.8% and 48.2% had their first and second delivery at a public health facility. Some (21.9%) of the respondents had poor knowledge of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases while 78.1% had good knowledge. Age, level of education, marital status, and partners level of education were significantly associated with knowledge of HIV and other STIs. Women between 30-39 years of age and had secondary school education were 1.7 times and 2.6 time more likely to have knowledge of HIV and other STIs respectively (OR=1.737; p<0.001; CI=1.402 - 2.153; OR=2.604; p<0.001; CI=1.934 - 3.507). Statistically significant association between knowledge of HIV and place of birth. Women who delivered their first child in public healthcare facilities were 1.7 times more likely to have good knowledge of HIV and STIs (OR=1.674; p<0.001; CI=1.233 - 2.275). Conclusion: Women education is an important factor for knowledge of HIV and other STIs which is also associated with choice of place of delivery. To bridge the gap in the knowledge of HIV among urban women, it is essential to implement more educational programmes specifically targeted at less educated women in urban regions of Nigeria to increase the knowledge on HIV and other STIs.

The reemergence of the monkeypox (MPX) virus poses a serious threat to global health security. While the first human case was reported in Democratic Republic of Congo in 1970, a recent outbreak of this disease in May 2022 has gone ‘viral,’ spreading to most continents and occurring in nonendemic countries. Outside Africa, there have been reports of cases of MPX in countries such as Singapore in May 2019, Israel in September 2018, UK in September 2018, among others which have been traced back to importation of infected wild rodents from Africa. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that the standard laboratory facility to carry out MPX tests is Biosafety Containment Level (BSL)-2 working standards if the laboratory staff has taken smallpox vaccine within the last 3 years and BSL-3 working standards if the laboratory staff has not taken the smallpox vaccine. However, African countries have a shortage of BSL laboratories. Hence, there is a need to improve the integrated surveillance of the MPX virus, strengthen diagnostic capacity, capacity building of health workforce, public education programs, fund research, and development, among others. Leveraging a ‘One Health’ approach will offer fresh insight into the human–animal–environment interface and boost the understanding on the possibility and mechanisms of spillback and reverse zoonosis as well as disease severity and risk factors for severe disease as well as its epidemiology in various subpopulations. Not leaving Africa behind in the prevention, diagnosis, and management of MPX is important to stopping the spread and reemergence of this virus.

Introduction: Early marriage exposes young brides to a lot of ills, which are not limited to emotional and mental distress, school drop-out, early widowhood, Vesico-vaginal fistula (VVF) disease, etc. This study, therefore, aims to present the proportion of young girls in Africa within age groups 15-19 and 20-24 years who are married, along with the percentage of those within age 20-24 years who got married before age 15 or 18.Methodology: This study made use of secondary data from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), 2017, on the proportion of child brides in the 29 African countries. The raw data was inputted into the Microsoft Excel 2019, analyzed and presented in sentences, percentages, and tables. Results: Niger had the highest proportion (61%) of girls within the age 15-19 years who were married while Namibia had the lowest (5%). Out of 28 countries, 19 countries had less than 25% of teenage girls (15-19 years) who were married. Niger also accounted for the highest proportion (91%) of young brides married by the age 20-24 years, while Namibia had the lowest percentage (20%) of brides within the age 20-24 years. Conclusion: African countries rank among the first twenty with a high prevalence of child marriages. This practice affects the health, economic status, quality of life of these “innocent girls” both in the present and in the future. Therefore, measures to tackle this menace as recommended by UNICEF and UNFPA and emphasized by this study needs to be put in place to change this sad narrative.