Saving kids: Who doesn’t want to do that? Though relatively uncontroversial (say, compared to saving drug addicts and sex workers), the agenda for child survival is not new. In fact, it’s a (relatively) old agenda in global health, arguably dating back to the time of UNICEF's third Executive Director James Grant (1980-1995) who pushed to recognize the “global silent emergency” and to reduce preventable child deaths.
Afghanistan accounted for 15 percent of all U.S. economic assistance allocated in FY2012, amounting to 2 billion dollars. USAID has contributed at least 15 billion in aid to Afghanistan since 2001, with cumulative investments in the health sector at nearly 1 billion. But the impact of these investments has been difficult to judge because of lack of reliable data and accurate measurement, leaving many wondering: What have these funds achieved? In particular, has this economic assistance improved the health of Afghans?
How can it be possible, in 2009, that almost half of all Indian children under three years old are underweight or severely underweight, and that child malnutrition accounts for more than one-fifth of the total burden of disease in that country? Something like three-quarters of all preschool children in India have iron-deficiency anemia, which impairs learning, and more than half have at least mild vitamin A deficiency.
Not quite. Although officially falling on May 10, CARE and White Ribbon Alliance declared today that it should be Mothers Day Every Day with a new campaign calling for greater U.S. leadership to accelerate progress toward safe and healthy pregnancy and childbirth globally.
Abt Associates' Health Systems 20/20 project has just launched a great new resource:
On Wednesday, I had the pleasure of attending one of the many World AIDS Day celebrations at the World Bank. The vice president for Africa, Obiageli Ezekwesili launched the new AIDS Agenda for Action, 2007-2011.
It wouldn't be fall in downtown Washington, D.C. without the sudden swell of black suits emerging from shiny black limousines, road blockades and heightened security that herald the arrival of finance ministers and their entourages from 185 member countries off the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The World Bank recently released its first comprehensive review of the Multi-Country HIV/AIDS Program (MAP) for Africa, one of the first major donor initiatives to tackle HIV/AIDS in Africa.
The 34th Annual International Conference on Global Health that ended last Friday was inspiring on many fronts. Here are a few highlights:
In her acceptance of the Jonathan Mann Award, Dr. Bogaletc Gebre spoke without notes for 15 minutes - her voice cracking but her eyes dry - of how "the subjugation of African women from cradle to grave" can be ended with women's health empowerment, drawing on her experience working to end female genital cutting.
Every week we hear of new strides against infectious disease: greater access to ARVs for poor country AIDS patients; more pledges of assistance from the G8; new therapies coming on-line from non-profit partnerships. Infectious diseases in poor countries are finally getting the attention and resources they deserve. However, it would be easy in all the attention given to infectious diseases to forget that the greatest mortality and illness in the world is now caused by chronic diseases.