18 March 2010 -- In some regions, one in four people with tuberculosis becomes ill with a form of the disease that can no longer be treated with standard drugs according to a new WHO report.

International trademark filings under WIPO’s Madrid System for the International Registration of Marks (“the Madrid system”) dropped by 16% in 2009 as a result of the global economic downturn, though increases were observed among some major users of the system, notably the European Union (EU) (3.1%) and Japan (2.7%), as well as in the Republic of Korea (ROK) (+33.9%), Singapore (+20.5%), Croatia (+17.5%) and Hungary (+14.5%).

Improved access to copyright-protected content for the blind and other persons with visual or print disabilities (VIPs) was the focus of an international training course co-organized by the United States Copyright Office and WIPO in Washington from March 8 to 12, 2010. The International Training Program for Developing Countries and Countries in Transition on Emerging Issues in Copyright and Related Rights and Issues Pertaining to Blind and Visually Impaired Persons, brought together policy-makers and experts from 28 countries.

15 March 2010 -- The world is on track to meet safe drinking-water standards but more work needs to be done to improved sanitation

9 March 2010 -- WHO is releasing new guidelines for the treatment of malaria, and the first ever guidance on procuring safe and efficient anti-malarial medicines.

8 March -- On the occasion of International Women's Day, WHO encourages joining forces to fix the failures in health systems so that girls and women may enjoy equal access to health information and services.

WIPO Director General Francis Gurry wrapped up an official visit to Japan from March 1 to March 5, 2010, during which he met a number of high level Government representatives, including Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Masayuki Naoshima, and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Koichi Takemasa, as well as Japan Patent Office (JPO) Commissioner Tetsuhiro Hosono.

4 March 2010 -- Over 85 million children under five years old will be immunized against polio in 19 countries across West and Central Africa in an example of cross-border cooperation aimed at stopping a year-long polio epidemic.

3 March 2010 -- WHO along with five other UN agencies, have signed a joint statement enhancing the rights of adolescent girls

3 March 2010 -- Governments around the world proclaim 2011-2020 the decade of action for road safety. WHO welcomes the UN General Assembly seeks to halt the increase of world wide traffic accidents through a decade of action.

26 February -- On 25 February, WHO was saddened by the death of Professor Ihsan Dogramaci, who will be remembered for his tireless efforts and accomplishments in public health care. He was the last living signatory of the WHO Constitution, signed in New York in July 1946.

26 February 2010 -- The fifth anniversary of the entry into force of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control was held today in the Geneva headquarters of the World Health Organization.

24 February 2010 -- The first Global Forum of the Noncommunicable Disease Network (NCDnet) marks the first time WHO has convened key stakeholder groups to address the large-scale and increasing global health and development burden posed by noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).

International patent filings under WIPO’s Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) fell by 4.5% in 2009 with sharper than average declines experienced by some industrialized countries and growth in a number of East Asian countries. Provisional data indicates that 155,900 (annex 1) international patent applications were filed in 2009 as compared to the nearly 164,000 applications filed in 2008.

A workshop hosted by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) from February 2 to 5, 2010, brought together over 180 persons from some 32 organizations to promote awareness about accessibility for people with disabilities and to encourage webmasters within the United Nations system and other organizations to implement principles of accessibility in their daily work.

29 January 2010 -- WHO welcomes the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledge of US$ 10 billion over the next ten years to accelerate global vaccine efforts.

22 January 2010 -- Providing independent advice to Member States is a very important function of the World Health Organization (WHO). We take this work seriously and guard against the influence of any improper interests. The WHO influenza pandemic policies and response have not been improperly influenced by the pharmaceutical industry.

The importance of intellectual property (IP) in promoting innovation and boosting national economic development in Viet Nam topped discussions between Viet Nam’s President Nguyen Minh Triet and WIPO Director General Francis Gurry in Hanoi this week. Mr. Gurry pledged the Organization’s continuing support in further enhancing Viet Nam’s national IP capacity to innovate and achieve sustained economic growth.

The importance of intellectual property (IP) in promoting innovation and boosting national economic development in Viet Nam topped discussions between Viet Nam’s President Nguyen Minh Triet and WIPO Director General Francis Gurry in Hanoi this week. Mr. Gurry pledged the Organization’s continuing support in further enhancing Viet Nam’s national IP capacity to innovate and achieve sustained economic growth.

19 January 2010 -- The World Health Organization (WHO) Executive Board, currently holding its 126th session in Geneva, has appointed Mrs. Zsuzsanna Jakab as the new WHO Regional Director for Europe and re-appointed Dr Luis Gomes Sambo as the WHO Regional Director for Africa.