Good News in Global Health

09. September 2026 I News from the Hub I by : Anya Abanto Graffman

Anya Abanto Graffman from the Global Health Hub selected two positive developments that show the impact of building health systems in a coordinated way.

With so many recent and urgent developments shaping the global health landscape, it might feel like there is little good news to report. Yet, a lot of progress is happening, even during trying times of constant challenges. Since the good news is always worth sharing, for this issue of Good News in Global Health, I have selected two interesting headlines for you.

Road deaths fall by 21% globally

According to recent numbers by the World Health Organization (WHO), the global rate of traffic deaths declined by 21% between 2011 and 2025. This change has been observed despite the addition of over one billion motor-vehicles to the world's roads and general shifts in how people move [1].

The new WHO data comes hand in hand with the new UN declaration on road safety, adopted by the General Assembly in late July 2026. This declaration insists on global action to meet the SDG target of a 50% reduction in road deaths and injuries by 2030 compared with the levels of 2021 [2].

Personally, I have been a long-time advocate for road deaths being taken seriously as a public and global health issue. The burden falls overwhelmingly on the Global South: more than 90% of road traffic deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries, even though these countries hold a small fraction of the world's vehicles [3]. This is driven by a combination of factors: a general lack of infrastructure and planning, limited enforcement of traffic regulations, and the rapid rise of motorcycles and two-wheelers, fuelled in part by the growing platform economy that puts more delivery and ride-hailing workers on the road. For instance, more than half of road deaths no longer affect people in a car, but rather pedestrians, cyclists, or motorcyclists [4].

In spite of this great progress, I believe it is necessary to remain critical of the data and ask ourselves: who is seeing this decline? A global 21% decline in road deaths does not provide the full picture, as the progress has been uneven. For instance, the data reports that the European region managed to drop the road death rates by 36%, while the South-East Asian region only saw a 2% drop, the Americas saw no change in high road death rates, and the African region actually saw road deaths increase by 17% [5].

Paving the road (no pun intended) for safer pathways, safer commutes and safer working environments should remain a priority for global health in the years to come. We must not forget that all road accidents are preventable, but that comes with great, coordinated effort and structures that care for the population’s wellbeing. Luckily, in time, road safety will not be exclusive to a few nations.

El Salvador eliminates trachoma as a public health problem

The second part of this segment takes us to El Salvador, the first certified central American country that recently eliminated trachoma through a multisectoral approach [6]. Trachoma, a neglected tropical disease, is the leading infectious cause of blindness worldwide, mainly affecting poor and rural communities with limited access to water and hygiene facilities [7].

In the Americas, e.g. in rural and remote areas of Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, and Peru, trachoma continues to pose a major issue for the health and wellbeing of its population. The sickness signifies not only devastating health outcomes for the affected population but is also associated with long-term negative economic and social consequences that stem from loss of productivity from blindness and visual impairment [8].

Surprisingly, this elimination of trachoma was achieved in only three years of a rigorous surveillance strategy, which included strengthened primary healthcare services, improvements in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), eye health services, and multisectoral collaboration across government sectors, communities, and international partners [9]. This effort has been supported by the Panamerican Health Organization’s (PAHO) Initiative for the Elimination of Trachoma in the Americas [10].

Not only does this example show how important coordinated efforts are for the achievement of better health outcomes. Besides the elimination of trachoma, a big win in my view, is the establishment of healthcare systems and improved living conditions to sustain such an achievement. In the long term, the investment in trained personnel, surveillance mechanisms, and the professional and multisectoral management of cases is an aspect that is going to propel the country's health forward. This approach can serve as a model for other countries in the Americas.

Looking ahead

So, what do these news have in common? The elimination of a rare tropical disease in a Central American country and the decline of road deaths might seem unrelated at first glance. Yet both cases depend greatly on the establishment of coordinated systems that make these milestones possible in the first place, whether it be water, sanitation and hygiene, or safe roads and forms of transportation.

These same systems, however, remain vulnerable. A drop in funding, a shift in political priorities, or a weakening of surveillance could quietly undo years of progress. Once the milestone has been reached, the real challenge is sustaining it. May these news remind us of the importance of betting on the right systems to propel global health forward and protect the most vulnerable populations, and that the achievements worth celebrating are, almost always, the product of constant, multisectoral coordination.