World Status Report

February 25, 2025

This report intends to give the UTD Community a snapshot of international risks, and other issues as reported by the linked media and official sources from the U.S. and other countries. 

More health and security information for each country can be found in the travel advisories issued by the governments of the United States, Canada, the UK, New Zealand, and Australia, and the CDC, ECDC, and WHO sites. Not all advise in these sites will apply to US travelers. 

Security 

Environment 

  • Botswana – Floods (ERCC) – According to UNICEF, seven people died and one person is still missing. Additionally, 1,749 people have been sheltered, and almost 3,000 people have been affected across the country. UNICEF and Botswana Red Cross Society are providing help to the affected population. 
  • Indonesia – Severe weather, floods and landslides (ERCC) – On 22 February, two fatalities and two destroyed houses. Furthermore, Bandar Lampung City in Sumatra island experienced flood and landslide events which resulted in two fatalities, 9,353 affected families and one damaged house. Furthermore, on 23 February, strong winds hit Bantul Regency in the Special Region of Yogyakarta where one person has been injured and 27 families affected. 
  • Ecuador – Severe weather (ERCC) – Since January 2025, heavy rainfall has been affecting most of Ecuador, causing floods, triggering landslides, and resulting in casualties and significant damage. According to UN OCHA, nine people have died, while more than 7,500 others have been affected.  
  • Colombia – Severe weather (ERCC) – As of 21 February, UN OCHA reports that 19,500 people have been affected, with widespread damage to homes and significant losses of crops and livelihoods. Additionally, the community of Tumaco has declared a public calamity due to damage to 15 schools, resulting in their closure and disrupting the education of approximately 2,660 students. 

Health 

  • New round of polio vaccinations begins in Gaza (UN News) – The latest round of a large-scale polio vaccination campaign in Gaza targeting nearly 600,000 young children got underway on Saturday. It follows a campaign last year that reached hundreds of thousands of young children under the age of 10.  Polio virus was recently detected in wastewater samples in Gaza, indicating that circulation is ongoing, thus putting young lives at risk. 
  • Breast cancer cases projected to rise by nearly 40 per cent by 2050 (UN News) – Breast cancer cases are expected to increase by 38 percent globally by 2050, with annual deaths from the disease projected to rise by 68 percent, according to a new report from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a specialised branch of the World Health Organization (WHO). 

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