(2006)In June, the body of Philip Merrill, a Maryland-based publisher and philanthropist who had donated tens of millions of dollars to his favorite causes and served on many high-profile diplomatic and intelligence assignments, was found in the Chesapeake Bay. An autopsy confirmed that Merrill, age 72, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
(2008) Recent demographic trends have created a youth bulge in the Middle East and North Africa, with nearly one in every five people age 15 to 24. Despite its oil wealth and improved health and education systems, the region's political, social, and economic systems still do not meet the needs of this rapidly growing young population.
(April 2006) Populations in developing countries will be aging rapidly in the coming decades: The number of older persons (those age 65 or older) in less developed countries is expected to increase from 249 million to 690 million between 2000 and 2030.
(2002) According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 300 million people worldwide suffer from malaria each year resulting in at least 1 million deaths.
(2006)The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has experienced major improvements in health over the past few decades.1 Today, on average, a girl born in Egypt is expected to live for 72 years—nearly 20 years longer than if she had been born in the early 1970s—owing in large part to a 70 percent improvement in infant mortality rates over the same time period.