Photo: Anna Shvets/Pexels (CC0)
In today’s edition: a new anti-malarial drug designed specifically for newborns has received the green light from the World Health Organization, Colombia and Paraguay see their multidimensional poverty rates plummet, and engineers across the EU are turning to an expert source to stop flooding: beavers.
With children under the age of five accounting for more than two-thirds of malaria deaths, the newly introduced combination of artemether and lumefantrine hopes to better support this vulnerable group. Until now, infants have been treated with drugs developed for older children, which expose the newborns to risks of dosing errors and toxicity.
Source: Deutsche Welle
In 2010, Colombia’s multidimensional poverty rate – which includes access to education and available infrastructure – stood at 29.7%. By the end of 2025, it stood at 9.9%, continuing a seven-year downward trend. The Bogotá Capital District registered the lowest rate at 2.2%.
Source: Colombia Reports
Since 2006, when rates stood at roughly 50%, a third of Paraguay’s population has escaped poverty, with the rate now at 16%. Labour income growth was the primary driver of poverty reduction last year, with the biggest gains seen at the bottom of the income scale.
Source: World Bank
This week, a six-day conference in Santa Marta focusing on transitioning away from fossil fuels will host 50 country delegations, plus dozens of civil society organisations. The difference? Indigenous communities such as Colombia’s U’wa people will have a voice at the table.
Source: The Bogotá Post
The newly passed Jan Vishwas Act decriminalises over 700 minor offences, while also replacing the threat of imprisonment with warnings or fines for other misdemeanours. Prior to this change, defendants could face jail sentences for relatively innocuous crimes – such as street vendors failing to have the proper licences.
Source: Financial Express
Thanks to tireless efforts – mostly involving sustained political will and on-the-ground leadership from committed health professionals – Algeria is now the 10th country in Africa and 29th country globally to hit this milestone.
Source: WHO
The Prolamvano (Greek for “I Prevent”) programme encourages patients to attend early screenings for breast and cervical cancer, colorectal cancer, and cardiovascular diseases. New data suggest that early testing has already led to the detection of around 200,000 medical cases at an early stage, meaning improved outcomes for the majority of patients.
Source: Tovima
Marseille, a French city of roughly 2 million people on the northwestern Mediterranean coast, saw high levels of ecological damage within its shallow-water habitat during the 20th century. Now, after removing the human-caused drivers of the decline, the city has seen the Neptune grass meadows regrow without any need for intervention.
Source: Mongabay
The methods of the aquatic rodents have inspired engineers across the European Union looking to flood-proof rural areas using nature-based solutions. Now, the Lèze Valley in the south of France is putting them to the test.
Source: France24
A Sumatran orangutan has been filmed for the first time crossing a man-made canopy bridge constructed to help the endangered animals dodge a traffic-heavy road in Sumatra’s Pakpak Bharat region. The species is listed as critically endangered, with just over 13,587 individuals at the last count.
Source: Tuoi Tre
