"Good morning, good afternoon and good evening.

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First, to the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

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More than 10 000 cases and 5000 deaths have now been reported in the DRC.

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In some areas transmission is slowing, but new hotspots continue to emerge.

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Displacement, rainy weather, attacks on health care and difficulties in reaching remote areas are complicating the response.

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The DRC is also seeing its worst cholera outbreak in decades, with more than 60 000 cases and 1800 deaths reported so far this year.

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In Kenya, nine cases of Ebola have been reported, including two deaths, and one case has also been confirmed in Nigeria.

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I commend Kenya and Nigeria for their rapid response to these imported cases, and for their transparency in reporting them.

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It shows that when countries prepare well, they can manage cases and limit spread.

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We call on countries that have imposed travel restrictions to lift them.

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Such restrictions punish countries for doing the right thing, create disincentives for transparency, and harm the response.

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WHO is supporting all countries neighbouring DRC to prepare for the possible importation of cases;

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Just as we continue support DRC to scale up every part of the response, including research.

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Last month, a vaccine trial began using the Ervebo vaccine, which is approved for Ebola virus, but not for Bundibugyo virus.

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Today, WHO expert groups are recommending adding two vaccine candidates to the trial that have been developed specifically for Bundibugyo virus.

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The candidates are ChAdOx1 BDBV, developed by the University of Oxford with the Serum Institute of India, and Moderna's mRNA-1469.

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The trial is being led by the DRC's National Institute for Biomedical Research, with support from national and international partners, including WHO.

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Vaccines are powerful tools, but they are not substitutes for the proven measures that can save lives now: early care, contact tracing, isolation, safe and dignified burials and trusted engagement with communities.

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Now to Sudan, where more than three years of war have created one of the world's largest humanitarian and health crises – and yet it remains forgotten and ignored by the international community.

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Access to health care remains severely constrained by insecurity, shortages of medicines and health workers, restrictions on humanitarian access, and attacks on health care.

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Since the conflict began, WHO has verified more than two-hundred-and-thirty such attacks, causing more than two-thousand deaths and hundreds of injuries.

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A recent escalation in drone attacks is having a devastating toll on civilians and critical civilian infrastructure.

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Repeated attacks on power stations and fuel depots are disrupting electricity and fuel supplies, further threatening an already fragile health system.

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Drone attacks on civilians have also been reported in the Amhara and Tigray regions of Ethiopia, killing children and people who were trying to get food.  

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In both countries, all parties must respect international humanitarian law, protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, and safeguard health facilities, health workers and patients.

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The most courageous choose peace.

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Next week I will join world leaders in Türkiye for the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP31.

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Once again, WHO will be making the case that the climate crisis is a health crisis, and that health is the most compelling reason for climate action.

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The health impacts of climate change are not a theoretical risk for the future. They are right here and right now.

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The climate crisis is fuelling outbreaks, driving higher rates of heart and lung disease, cancer and asthma, and making healthy diets less affordable. 

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Climate denialism doesn’t help, it only hurts.

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Ahead of COP31, WHO is today releasing new estimates on the costs and benefits of proven actions that protect health and reduce emissions.

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These include heat-health warning systems; climate-resilient water, sanitation and hygiene services; cleaner household energy sources; and efficient fossil fuel pricing policies.

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WHO estimates that scaling up these measures globally could prevent 1.6 million deaths each year, while generating an estimated 3.9 trillion US dollars in economic welfare benefits and a further 5.4 trillion dollars in fiscal benefits.

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Ultimately, climate action is not a cost, it’s an investment in healthier people, a healthier planet, and healthier economies.

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Also today, WHO is releasing new global estimates on physical activity among adolescents.

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Physical activity is known to prevent heart disease, some cancers, and diabetes, and promote healthy weight and mental wellbeing. 

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WHO recommends that children and adolescents aged 11 to 17 should get at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day on average.

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Our new estimates suggest that only 14% of adolescents globally are reaching that level.

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And one in four adolescents globally report not getting 60 minutes of physical activity on any day in a week, let alone every day.

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These levels of physical inactivity among adolescents are virtually unchanged in 15 years, and girls continue to face greater barriers than boys in almost every country and region.

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The answer is not simply to tell young people to try harder.

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Governments must make physical activity the easy choice, by investing in safe schools, public spaces, walking and cycling routes, transport policy and affordable opportunities for sport and recreation.

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Now to one of the great success stories in global health – the fight against neglected tropical diseases, or NTDs.

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NTDs are a group of 21 diseases that mainly affect poor and marginalized communities in tropical and subtropical regions.

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In 2020, the World Health Assembly adopted the global roadmap for NTDs, with a target to eliminate at least one NTD in 100 countries, and to reduce the number of people needing interventions for NTDs by 90%, by 2030.

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Today, WHO is publishing its mid-term evaluation of the global road map, which shows very encouraging progress.

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As of June this year, 63 countries had eliminated at least one NTD;

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The number of people requiring interventions has fallen by 19% since 2020;

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And last year, only 10 cases of Guinea worm disease were reported.

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But progress is uneven, funding is fragile and dependent on a small number of donors, and recent funding cuts have disrupted services and programmes.

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Now is the time for countries and partners to step up, not step back.

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That means increasing domestic financing, sustaining external support and integrating services for neglected tropical diseases into primary health care and universal health coverage.

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Finally, next Tuesday marks World Science Day for Peace and Development.

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Science has always been the driver of progress in health, and the foundation of everything that WHO does.

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But evidence improves lives only when it is trusted, understood and translated into policy and practice.

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Misinformation and disinformation have become a systemic public health risk.

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They distort decisions about vaccination, treatment, prevention and care, and can undermine emergency responses.

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Next Tuesday, WHO will launch a new global movement called Together for Science and Health.

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This initiative will bring together partners to focus on three connections: between science and society; science and policy; and science and communication.

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Its purpose is not simply to rebut false claims.

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It is to strengthen information integrity, make evidence more accessible and relevant, and build trust through transparency, credible voices and genuine engagement with communities.

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We invite governments, institutions, civil society, media, technology companies and communities everywhere to join us. . . "