WHO, the Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean launches the World AIDS Campaign 2013: HIV treatment works! Treat More, Treat Better

Cairo, 27 November 2013- Not even one in five people living with HIV in the Eastern Mediterranean Region and in need of treatment is actually receiving it. The number of people living with HIV and receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) in the Region has increased over the past five years. However, the number of new infections is increasing at a faster pace. In addition, the majority of people living with HIV do not know that they have acquired the infection because they have never taken the HIV test. Even when they have been diagnosed, they are not always linked to care and treatment and may lose contact with the health system for many years. By the time they return, they may already be sick and treatment may be less effective.

To address this alarming situation, the World Health Organization, Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean launches, on the occasion of World Aids Day, a new regional campaign to expand access to good quality treatment and care.

Safe roads for all

The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims was started by RoadPeace in 1993 17 November 2013 – The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims was endorsed by the United Nations on 26 October 2005 as a global day to be observed every third Sunday in November each year, making it a major advocacy day for road traffic injury prevention. The slogan of this year's campaign is: Let’s have roads that are safe for all.

The Day goes beyond remembering those who lost their lives or were injured in road crashes, their families and communities, to paying tribute to committed emergency teams, police and health professionals, who address the traumatic and detrimental consequences of road traffic crashes on a daily basis. It calls for greater global action to achieve the goal of the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011–2020 to save five million lives.

This year, the Day carries even more significance with the release of the WHO Global status report on road safety 2013, which provides an update of the road safety situation in countries across the world. More important it sets the baseline for monitoring action through the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011–2020.

World Diabetes Day 2013

14 November 2013 – World Diabetes Day is observed every year by the World Health Organization on 14 November. The International Diabetes Federation has selected "Diabetes: protect our future" as the slogan of this year's Day, which marks the fifth and final year of the 2009–2013 campaign on diabetes education and prevention.

Diabetes is a global challenge but is particularly important for countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region, as the burden in the Region is enormous. Six of the ten countries with the highest rates of prevalence of diabetes in the world are in this Region. Simple lifestyle measures facilitated by conducive environments have, however, been shown to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes and its complications.

The sheer burden of diabetes highlights the need for partners to work together. Prevention and control of diabetes requires concerted public health action and close collaboration among international, regional and national partners.