BuzzFeed News: Trump’s Anti-Abortion Policies Have Created A Nightmare For Women In Nepal
“…Since 2017, experts fearing the worst issued warnings about the repercussions of Trump’s expanded [Mexico City] policy, but had no way to assess the impact on the ground. Now, a collaboration between BuzzFeed News and the Kathmandu Post has found that everything rights groups feared as a result of the expanded [global gag rule (GGR)] is unfolding in real time. In Nepal, where one-third of the country’s GDP comes from remittances, curtailed USAID funding has led to staff reductions and the closure of clinics, and women and men have lost access to conversations about consent, contraception, and HIV. … This is the story of how a decision made in Washington, by a man elected to office by U.S. voters, has turned life-threatening for women in one of the poorest countries in the world, where the vast majority cannot access doctors and clinics, where child marriage is still a common practice, and, although maternal mortality has improved, deaths have historically been high…” (Jha/Rai, 11/2).

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New York Times: Scientists With Links to China May Be Stealing Biomedical Research, U.S. Says
“…The NIH and the FBI have begun a vast effort to root out scientists who they say are stealing biomedical research for other countries from institutions across the United States. Almost all of the incidents they uncovered and that are under investigation involve scientists of Chinese descent, including naturalized American citizens, allegedly stealing for China. Seventy-one institutions, including many of the most prestigious medical schools in the United States, are now investigating 180 individual cases involving potential theft of intellectual property…” (Kolata/Hernandez, 11/4).

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Science: What one member of Trump’s new science advisory council wants it to tackle
“The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) has yet to hold its first meeting, and the White House hasn’t even announced its full 16-person roster. But one newly appointed member, Director of IBM Research Dario Gil in Yorktown Heights, New York, already has a wish list of issues he’d like it to tackle. … PCAST will be chaired by Kelvin Droegemeier, the president’s science adviser, who filled a 2-year vacancy when he became director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in January. Gil spoke with ScienceInsider shortly after the White House announced PCAST’s first cohort of seven scientists and industry leaders on 22 October…” (Mervis, 11/1).

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The Guardian: British government takes global lead on violence against women and girls
“Britain has become the biggest government funder of programs to prevent violence against women and girls globally after launching a seven-year project targeting countries with some of the highest levels of abuse. The £67.5m program will scale up projects that have already shown success in reducing violence across Africa and Asia, and will pilot and research new ideas to tackle the global crisis. … Launched by the Department for International Development (DFID) on Saturday, the program — What Works to Prevent Violence: Impact at Scale — builds on a previous initiative, launched in 2014, that gathered evidence about the scale and impact of violence against women and girls, and ways to stop it…” (Ford, 11/2).

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Health Policy Watch: Non-Profit R&D Can Successfully Bring New Treatments For Neglected Diseases To Market
“A ‘public interest R&D’ model can bring effective treatments for neglected diseases to patients at comparatively low cost, through a collaborative, access-oriented development process. The model is outlined in the new report 15 Years of Needs-Driven Innovation for Access, by Drugs for Neglected Disease Initiative (DNDi), released Wednesday…” (Ren, 10/30).

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AFP: Congolese anti-Ebola fighter killed as new vaccine arrives
“A radio host who helped spread the word in the fight against Ebola has been stabbed to death at his home in northeast Democratic Republic of Congo, the army said Sunday. The motive for the murder in the town of Lwemba in the troubled Ituri region was unknown, but it came as health authorities were set to introduce a new vaccine against the disease in unaffected areas…” (11/3).

Additional coverage of the murder and the new vaccine is available from BBC, CIDRAP News, and DW.

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Al Jazeera: Can the world afford universal health care? (11/2).

Borgen Magazine: The End Neglected Tropical Diseases Act (Gordon, 11/1).

Devex: Q&A: James Love on the biggest challenges in the fight for affordable drugs (Green, 11/4).

Devex: 5 myths drowning out progress on WASH (Root, 11/4).

DW: Philippines struggling to cope with back-to-back disease outbreaks (Santos, 11/1).

Health Policy Watch: Lessons Learned And Challenges Ahead: DNDi Celebrates 15 Years (Fletcher, 10/30).

New York Times: New Delhi, Choking on Toxic Air, Declares Health Emergency (Schultz et al., 11/1).

NPR: An HIV Crisis Among Pakistan’s Children (Simon, 11/2).

Reuters: Measles and mistrust in Ukraine weaken world’s defenses (Kelland et al., 11/4).

U.N. News: Far more needed to ‘confront the world’s climate emergency,’ U.N. chief tells ASEAN Summit (11/3).

VOA: WFP: Malnutrition, Obesity Increase Poverty, Limit Development in El Salvador (Schlein, 11/3).

Xinhua: News Analysis: UNICEF report reveals 80 pct Indian kids suffer from “hidden hunger” (11/1).

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Devex: Opinion: The new U.S. development agency could be a game-changer for health innovation
Steve Davis, president and CEO of PATH

“…With another stopgap funding measure, the widely anticipated launch of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, or DFC, was stalled from its Oct. 1 deadline. … I hope Congress and the administration will come together to provide the necessary resources and authorities to get the DFC launched. That’s just the first step. Even now as the DFC leaders start laying the groundwork for an investment strategy, they should look toward health as a key priority. … By deploying new financing models — including much-needed blended finance options that combine public and philanthropic resources to mobilize private capital — the DFC has the power to bring in a range of new partners to advance health innovation…” (11/1).

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Financial Times: Progress toward sustainable development is seriously off-track
António Guterres, secretary general of the United Nations

“…There has been some progress in the four years since the [Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)] were adopted. … But overall, we are seriously off-track. Hunger is rising, half the world’s people lack basic education and essential health care, women face discrimination and disadvantage everywhere. One reason for the faltering progress is the lack of financing. … We need business leaders to use their enormous influence to push for inclusive growth and opportunities. No one business can afford to ignore this effort, and there is no global goal that cannot benefit from private sector investment…” (11/4).

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Financial Times: It is time to position Islamic finance as sustainability leader
Bandar Hajjar, president of the Islamic Development Bank

“…Islamic finance places great importance on improving the quality of life, social equity and fair trade relations. It recognizes the importance of protecting the environment and forbids irresponsible profiteering at the expense of others, or investment in businesses that damage our society. … Based on principles that promote links between finance and economic activities, it is time to position the Islamic finance industry as a development leader. By doing so, the deployment of Islamic finance solutions has the potential to play an important role in helping to bridge the financing gap for the SDGs, and subsequently pave the way for a reinvigorated, more accountable financial system…” (11/3).

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Center for Global Development: What U.S. Government Initiative Do All Three 2019 Economics Nobel Winners Like? (Hint: It’s at USAID.)
Charles Kenny, director of technology and development and senior fellow, and David Evans, senior fellow, both with CGD, discuss the Development Innovation Ventures (DIV) program of USAID, including praise from 2019 Nobel Prize winners Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo, and Michael Kremer, and USAID Administrator Mark Green, as well as Kremer’s role in establishing the program and its funding (11/1).

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TAG: 2019 Pipeline Report
This “annual review provides an overview of research and development of innovations for diagnosing, preventing, treating, and curing HIV, hepatitis C virus (HCV), and tuberculosis (TB),” according to the TAG website. Various updates on the diseases are available for download (Multiple authors, 11/4).

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UNAIDS: Winnie Byanyima joins UNAIDS as Executive Director
“UNAIDS is pleased to welcome Winnie Byanyima as its new Executive Director. Ms. Byanyima brings to the role more than 30 years of experience in political leadership, diplomacy, and humanitarian engagement. ‘I am excited to be joining UNAIDS and am looking forward to working with all our partners to help drive the HIV response forward and to build fairer, healthier, and happier societies, particularly for women and girls and for all groups of people shut out and left behind,’ said Ms. Byanyima…” (11/1).

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Seton Hall University School of Diplomacy and International Relations’ Center for Global Health Studies: Global Health Governance
The 2019 Fall and Spring combined issue of the Global Health Governance journal contains articles on various topics, including Japan’s health diplomacy, reactivity to Ebola and Zika outbreaks, and the recent history of the global health security field (Multiple authors, 11/2).

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USAID: USAID Deputy Administrator Bonnie Glick’s Visit to Vietnam
“U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Deputy Administrator Bonnie Glick traveled to Vietnam from October 30 to November 2, 2019. While in Hanoi, the Deputy Administrator met with Ministry of Health officials, including Vice Minister Truong Quoc Cuong, to discuss the country’s national HIV response. The Deputy Administrator commended the Government of Vietnam on its notable progress transitioning the national HIV response to domestic financing — an effort that USAID is supporting under the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief…” (11/2).

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ShareAmerica.gov: 4 ways the U.S. is saving lives inside Venezuela
“…Here are four ways aid from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is saving lives inside Venezuela: 1. Providing critical health assistance. … 2. Supporting water and sanitation programs. … 3. Providing emergency food assistance. … 4. Supporting protection programs…” (11/4).

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