Super Typhoon Mangkhut — known as Ompong in the Philippines —is the strongest typhoon to hit in the region this year. As it made landfall on September 15, the typhoon battered the northeastern part of the country, ripping off roof sheets, cutting power and communication lines and impacting the lives of millions of people in its path.
On November 29, the Philippines became the 44th country since the year 1999 to officially eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus (MNT). This announcement leaves just 15 countries around the world still facing the threat of MNT, an excruciating and often fatal disease that affects mothers and newborns, usually through unhygienic childbirth and umbilical cord care practices.
