13 December 2011 -- Malaria mortality rates have fallen by more than 25% globally since 2000 according to the World malaria report 2011, issued today. This is the result of a significant scaling-up of malaria prevention and control measures in the last decade, including the widespread use of bed nets, better diagnostics and a wider availability of effective medicines to treat malaria.

30 November 2011 -- The Report on the global HIV/AIDS response shows that increased access to HIV services resulted in a 15% reduction of new infections over the past decade and a 22% decline in AIDS-related deaths in the last five years. While there is still much to be done, 2011 was a game changing year, in terms of current progress and innovations creating hope for substantial future advances.

21 November 2011 -- Only one candidate has been proposed for the election of WHO Director-General. The candidate is Dr Margaret Chan, the current Director-General, whose name has been submitted by China.

4 November 2011 -- The Executive Board of WHO ended a three-day special session with Member States expressing strong support for WHO's work. Agreement was reached on broad proposals for reform, which aim to better position WHO to improve health outcomes.

19 October 2011 -- Life expectancy gap between countries is 36 years and there is ample evidence that a person's health status is largely determined by his/her socio-economic position. Governments will be discussing necessary steps to tackle the root causes of health inequities.

11 October 2011 -- For the first time the number of people falling ill with tuberculosis (TB) is declining. A new WHO report also shows that the number of people dying from the disease fell to its lowest level in a decade. Yet, current progress is at risk from underfunding, especially efforts to combat drug-resistant TB.

7 October 2011 -- One in four people will require mental health care at some point in their lives but in many countries only two per cent of all health sector resources are invested in mental health services.

26 September 2011 -- Air pollution is reaching levels that threaten people's health according to air quality data released today by WHO. The information includes data from nearly 1100 cities across 91 countries, including capital cities and cities with more than 100 000 residents.

19 September 2011 -- WHO welcomes the UN General Assembly's adoption of a political declaration on the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases (such as diabetes, heart disease and stroke, chronic respiratory disease and cancer). For the first time, global leaders have reached consensus in the General Assembly on concrete actions to tackle these diseases.

18 September 2011 -- Noncommunicable diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, killing more people every year. Nearly 80% of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. But a new WHO study reveals that low-income countries could introduce strategies to prevent and treat cancer, heart disease, diabetes and lung disease for just US$ 1.20 per person per year.

15 September 2011 -- The number of children under five years of age dying each year declined from more than 12 million in 1990 to 7.6 million in 2010, UNICEF and WHO said today, releasing the latest estimates on worldwide child mortality.

14 September 2011 -- More than nine million of all deaths attributed to noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) occur before the age of 60; 90% of these "premature" deaths occurred in low and middle income countries. A new WHO report features information on the NCDs situation in 193 countries, as global leaders prepare to meet at the United Nations high-level meeting on noncommunicable diseases in New York, 19-20 September 2011.

9 September 2011 -- Today, WHO acknowledges the generous commitment by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to donate 400 million more deworming tablets - albendazole - a year over the next five years to help children in deprived communities. This donation comes on top of the 600 million tablets of albendazole already being used in the Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis.

30 August 2011 -- Newborn deaths decreased from 4.6 million in 1990 to 3.3 million in 2009, shows a new study published in the medical journal PLoS Medicine today. Most of these newborns are dying of three causes - preterm delivery, asphyxia and infections - for which well-documented cost-effective interventions exist.