Malaria cases have increased dramatically in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, leaving clinics and treatment centres unable to cope, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has warned. The number of people treated for malaria in MSF projects has soared by 250 per cent since 2009 in six provinces – half of the vast African country – and accelerated even more sharply in recent months. The reasons for the trend are not clear, although it is thought renewed fighting by militia groups has made it increasingly difficult for people to access prevention and treatment for the mosquito-borne disease.

This brief update from the United Nations Fund (UNICEF) reports on recent developments in polio-endemic Nigeria. As of 13th of April 2012, 20 new cases of wild poliovirus (WPV) have been reported in eight states, compared to nine cases for the same time period in four states in 2011. The polio eradication programme is addressing challenges in campaign quality while dealing with a deteriorating security situation. In key infected states (Borno, Kano, Sokoto, Yobe), more than one in three children has received less than four doses of the oral polio vaccine (OPV).