Top Stories: Disaster Aid, Youth Employment, Oral Health, and Prosthetics for Amputees

Common diseases often overlooked – Oral diseases include tooth decay, gum disease and oral cancer, among others. They afflict nearly half the world’s population, some 3.5 billion people. That’s 1 billion more than cases of mental illness, heart disease, diabetes, respiratory disease and all cancers - combined. Oral health programmes are often neglected by the global health agenda as governments fail to invest in dental facilities and workforces.
Providing disaster aid to millions – The IFRC has a presence in almost every country, with systems in place that allow it to respond to crises both large and small. The IFRC disaster fund can be mobilized in a matter of hours if a small-scale disaster occurs. In a bigger crisis, they have to get the international community involved to mobilize aid on a larger scale.
Empowering global youth employment – In 2023, the global youth unemployment rate was 13%. This is the lowest global rate for 15 years. But the picture is not the same across countries with a higher rate in many developing regions. Aftershocks from the Covid-19 pandemic badly affected youth employment but other factors are also at play, say experts.
Restoring mobility for amputees in Mexico – Proactible manufactures low-cost prostheses for people with lower-body amputations. Demand for prosthetics is growing fast in Mexico, where 10,000 people undergo amputations every year. The waiting list for a state-funded prosthesis can be up to 4 years says Carlos Calderón, Founder and CEO of Proactible.