Publications Search

Lessons learned for surveillance system strengthening through capacity building and partnership engagement in post-Ebola Guinea, 2015–2019

The 2014–2016 Ebola outbreak in Guinea revealed systematic weaknesses in the existing disease surveillance system, which contributed to delayed detection, underreporting of cases, widespread transmission in Guinea and cross-border transmission to neighboring Sierra Leone and Liberia, leading to the largest Ebola epidemic ever recorded. Efforts to understand the epidemic's scale and distribution were hindered by problems with data completeness, accuracy, and reliability. In 2017, recognizing…

Migration Health 2020 Impact Overview

This report is an annual overview of activities led and implemented by the Migration Health Division of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in 2020, in partnership with Member States, United Nations agencies and other partners in the international community, to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, meet the operational challenges and advance understanding of migration health, encourage socioeconomic development through migration, and work towards ensuring respect of the human…

COVID-19 and the State of Global Mobility in 2020

The year 2020 was a landmark for human mobility, with dramatically reduced cross-border movements of all kinds. The COVID-19 pandemic decimated tourism and business travel; severely curtailed labour migration; and dampened movement of all stripes, from that of international students to family reunification. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has been tracking the surge in travel restrictions, border closures and health-related travel requirements imposed by governments since…

Public health emergency management capacity building in Guinea: 2014-2019

Abstract

Before the Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak of 2014-2016, Guinea did not have an emergency management system in place. During the outbreak, Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) 2014-2019 funds made it possible to rapidly improve the country's capacity to manage epidemics through the development of public health emergency operation centres (PHEOCs) at the national and district levels. Since the end of the response, the infrastructure, staff, and systems of these…

Controlling the spread of COVID-19 at ground crossings | Interim guidance 20 May 2020

This guidance advises countries how to reduce the spread of COVID-19 resulting from travel, transportation, and trade on and around ground crossings by:
1. Identifying priority ground crossings and communities;
2. Scaling up preparedness and control measures at these locations. 

This guidance has been developed in line with WHO’s Handbook for public health capacity building at ground crossings and cross-border collaborations and WHO’s global strategy to respond to COVID-…

Health, Border and Mobility Management: A framework to empower governments and communities to prevent, detect and respond to health threats along the mobility continuum

As people across the world become more and more mobile, the link between human mobility and health has become increasingly relevant, dynamic, and complex. Not only is the health of migrants affected by the circumstances of their migration process along the mobility continuum – at the origin, transit, destination, and return locations – but movements also impact public health as people on the move and the communities hosting them interact within and across borders.

Emergency Health – 2019 Global Highlights

IOM assists crisis-affected populations, governments, and host communities to strengthen and re-establish primary health-care systems. As a formal partner of the World Health Organization (WHO), and as a member of the Strategic Advisory Group of the InterAgency Standing Committee (IASC) Global Health Cluster, and the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN), IOM is a key player in responding to humanitarian and public health emergencies, as well as supporting health system recovery…

Interim Guidance on Scaling-up COVID-19 Outbreak in Readiness and Response Operations in Camps and Camp-like Settings (jointly developed by IFRC, IOM, UNHCR and WHO)

This interim guidance addresses specific needs and considerations required in humanitarian situations, including camps and camp-like settings and the surrounding host communities, in scaling-up readiness and response operations for the COVID-19 outbreak through effective multi-sectoral partnership. This is intended for field coordinators, camp managers, and public health personnel, as well as national and local governments and the wider humanitarian community working in humanitarian…

Refugee and Migrant Health in the context of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Assessment tool for response at municipal level in the WHO European Region

This assessment tool is to support municipalities and local authorities in identifying the risks and vulnerabilities that refugees and migrants face and to identify gaps where possible methods to minimize the impact of the pandemic exist so that they can be prioritized within local policy processes. Specific challenges arise from the increased diversity in health determinants, needs and health-seeking cultures and behaviours of these populations: many refugees and migrants in vulnerable…

Emergency Health - 2018 Global Highlights

IOM’s health response to humanitarian and public health emergencies aims to save lives, reduce morbidity and alleviate suffering while upholding humanitarian principles and protecting human dignity. IOM’s programming in this domain encompasses the various stages and typologies of emergencies, throughout all the phases of the mobility continuum.