2026 Jun 1;104(6):372–373. DOI: 10.2471/BLT.26.010626
Public health round-up
1. Narrowing the global vaccination gap in children under five years of age
The Big Catch-Up, a global campaign that started in 2023 to reverse global declines in childhood vaccination has reached 18.3 million children under five years of age across 36 countries, delivering over 100 million vaccine doses. Around 12.3 million were “zero-dose children” who had not previously received any vaccines and 15 million who had never received a measles vaccine. With implementation ending in March 2026, the Big Catch-Up is expected to meet its goal of reaching at least 21 million children.
2. First malaria treatment for newborns and infants
WHO has prequalified the first malaria treatment designed specifically for newborns and infants weighing between two and five kilograms. The new artemether-lumefantrine formulation meets international standards for quality, safety and efficacy, enabling public procurement and closing a long-standing treatment gap for the roughly 30 million babies born each year in malaria-endemic regions. Until now, the youngest patients have relied on medicines intended for older children, increasing risks of dosing errors and toxicity.
https:// bit .ly/ 4fkEoM2
3. Health care in armed conflict
On the tenth anniversary of United Nations (UN) Security Council resolution 2286 on health care in armed conflicts, adopted at its 7685th meeting on 3 May 2016, the heads of the International Committee of the Red Cross, WHO and Médecins Sans Frontières issued a joint warning that violence against health care in armed conflict has worsened, not improved. They stated that the day marks not an achievement, but a failure, as attacks on hospitals, ambulances, medical staff and patients continue unabated across multiple crises. The organizations report that when health care is targeted, preventable deaths rise, women give birth without adequate care, and entire communities lose access to lifesaving services, signalling a broader breakdown of respect for the laws of war. The three leaders urged states and all parties to conflict to uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law, stressing that states must not only comply themselves but use their influence to ensure others do the same. They called for concrete action to implement Resolution 2286, integrate protection of health care into military doctrine, strengthen domestic laws, allocate adequate resources, influence partners in conflict, investigate attacks transparently, and report regularly on progress. They emphasized that the continued targeting of health care reflects not a failure of the law but a failure of political will, urging world leaders to act decisively. Health care, they stressed, must never be a casualty of war. https://bit.ly/4uhLx4E
4. The Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH), led by the World Health Organization (WHO)…
…brings together more than 100 countries and over 100 partners who prioritize strengthening action on climate change and health at the national level. ATACH’s mandate is to identify and address the needs and priorities of countries, as well as to mobilize the collective strength of countries, partners, and other stakeholders to advance this agenda at scale.
Since its establishment in 2022, ATACH has gained international momentum as a global platform for collaboration on the implementation of priorities arising from global climate and health initiatives. ATACH’s priorities have included those promoted by various presidencies of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), notably:
• COP26 (United Kingdom) initiatives on sustainable, climate-resilient, and low carbon health systems;
• the Initiative for Climate Action and Nutrition (I-CAN), launched at COP27;
• the COP28 Health Declaration;
• the resolution of the Seventy-Seventh World Health Assembly (WHA) on climate change and health, as well as the WHO Global Action Plan on Climate and Health; and
• the Belém Health Action Plan (BHAP) from COP30.
5. The French Ministry of Health, Families, Autonomy, and People with Disabilities, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the ATACH Secretariat have organised a High-Level Strategic Meeting on 25 June 2026 in Paris.
This is a high-level in-person event organized under the French Presidency of the G7 in 2026. Location: Pierre Laroque Conference Room at the headquarters of the Ministry of Health, Families, Autonomy, and People with Disabilities of the French Republic, 14 Avenue Duquesne, 7th arrondissement, Paris, France. Date: 25 June 2026.
A brief history of ATACH, the objectives of the meeting, the preliminary agenda and expected outcomes, and the target audience, can be found here: https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default-source/climate-change/atach-strategic-meeting_agenda.pdf?sfvrsn=31a51eae_4.
Related links
–Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH)
–WHO’s work on climate and health
FACT SHEETS: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/one-health