Election focus on health and services: As Zambia heads toward the polls, parties are battling over economic recovery and public service delivery, with UPND highlighting free education and student meal allowances while opponents stress cost of living and jobs. Maternal health innovation: Kenyan doctors are using virtual reality and telemedicine to tackle preventable maternal deaths, aiming to improve access to skilled care. Refugee care in Lusaka: A Chinese medical team donated supplies and provided free specialist care to refugees at Makeni Transit Centre ahead of World Refugee Day. Premature baby survival story: Save the Children-supported newborn care training at Lewanika General Hospital helped save “Samuel,” born at 26 weeks. Student loan recovery: HELSB says it has recovered over K1.01 billion from former public university students (2018–2026) and is digitising processes. TB diagnostics upgrade: CIDRZ presented findings on reflex MTB/XDR testing feasibility, reporting drug-resistant TB detection beyond rifampicin-only methods. Health workforce push: UPND says it plans to recruit over 40,000 more health workers in its second term. Social protection emphasis: Zambia’s social protection officials call for stronger, more resilient systems to protect people from poverty, shocks and public health emergencies. Ebola watch regionally: Regional reporting highlights escalating Ebola preparedness and response efforts across neighbouring countries, with Zambia-linked screening and surveillance updates.