USAID's Office of Health, Infectious Diseases and Nutrition (HIDN) Monthly Update - October 2004

A monthly update on activities of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Health, Infectious Diseases and Nutrition (HIDN). The Monthly Update provides information about global health news, events, jobs and information. We encourage you to circulate this publication to colleagues.

Table of Contents

• A. New Information
  • Infant and Child Deaths Decline More than 60 Percent in Southern Mozambique
  • USAID Targets Iron-Folate Supplementation for 100,000 Women in India  
  • USAID has Major Role in Five of 17 Global Health Successes
  • Frontline Providers: Midwives Battle Maternal and Child Mortality
  • Addressing Multidrug Resistant Malaria in Asia


• B. News and Events
  • Massive Polio Immunization Campaign in Africa
  • USAID Awards Tuberculosis (TB) Alliance $8 Million Grant
  • USAID Awards $16 Million for New Malaria Initiative

A. New Information

• Infant and Child Deaths Decline More than 60 Percent in Southern Mozambique
  World Relief Mozambique, working through USAID's Child Survival and Health Grants Program in Gaza province of Southern Mozambique, reduced child mortality by 62.2 percent (from 119 to 45 deaths per 1,000 live births), and infant mortality by 65.8 percent (from 69.8 to 23.9 deaths per 1,000 live births) in the period from 2001 to 2002.



• USAID Targets Iron-Folate Supplementation for 100,000 Women in India
  On August 17, USAID, with the micronutrient project MOST, began a program to provide iron folic acid supplementation for 100,000 women of reproductive age in the northern Indian state of Jharkland.



• USAID has Major Role in Five of 17 Global Health Successes
  According to a recent study, USAID played a major role in five of 17 large-scale successes in global health.
  
  
• Frontline Providers: Midwives Battle Maternal and Child Mortality
  Over half a million women die each year from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth – 99 percent of them in developing countries – and another 15 to 20 million women suffer long-term effects from such complications.
  
  
• Addressing Multidrug Resistant Malaria in Asia
  While improved access to prompt diagnosis and efficacious treatment contributed to a decrease in the number of malaria deaths in Southeast Asia over past decades, the recent emergence of multi-drug-resistant (MDR) malaria threatens to reverse these gains. USAID is providing support at the country and regional level to strengthen capacity and monitor and respond to drug-resistant malaria in Southeast Asia.

B. News and Events

• Massive Polio Immunization Campaign in Africa
  What is described as the largest public health initiative ever undertaken began in West and Central Africa on October 8.



• USAID Awards Tuberculosis (TB) Alliance $8 Million Grant
  On October 4, USAID announced an $8 million grant to the Global Alliance for Tuberculosis Drug Development (TB Alliance) for research and development into new drugs to save lives and combat the rapid spread of TB infection, drug resistance and TB/HIV co-infection.



• USAID Awards $16 Million for New Malaria Initiatives
  In its ongoing battle against one of the world's deadliest diseases, USAID awarded $16 million to two projects for malaria drug and vaccine research and development.

If you have questions or comments, please contact Chris Thomas at ChThomas@usaid.gov.

Access earlier editions of the HIDN Monthly Update.

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