“We need to walk the talk by investing in human resources for health,” says Dr Peter Ngatia, AMREF’s Director for Capacity Building. “Walking the talk means investing in innovative methods of training and retaining health workers. Scaling up of production of human resources cannot happen unless we invest in the use of technology to train the numbers that are required. The 105 medical schools in Africa do not have the capacity to meet the urgent demand for doctors, nurses and midwives, among many other cadres of health workers.  Yet until we have adequately trained numbers of health workers, the attainment of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will remain an illusion.” 

The theme of the forum, which runs from January 25-29, is ‘Reviewing progress, renewing commitments to health workers towards MDGs and beyond’. It follows up from the first global forum on HRH held in Kampala in March 2008.

AMREF is an international African organisation committed to improving African health. AMREF has been training health workers for close to 50 years, including clinical officers, community midwives and community health workers. AMREF’s current focus is on improving the health of women and children by concentrating on human resources for health; health leadership, governance and management; health management information systems; and strengthening of community systems.

AMREF believes that the following areas must be addressed in developing human resources for health:

• Increase in the number of health workers produced in Africa
• Increase in the number of health workers produced in developed countries to stem immigration of Africa’s health workforce
• Reduction of rural-urban migration of health workers
• Reduction of movement of health workers from public to private sectors
• Increase in the development of skills and competencies of the existing health workforce
• Task shifting, where specific tasks normally performed by highly skilled health workers are moved to health workers with shorter training and fewer qualifications eg from doctors to clinical officers. 

These can only be achieved through:

• Use of innovative methods of training health workers, including doctors, clinical officers, nurses, midwives and community health workers e.g. application of ICT, eLearning , mLearning and telemedicine
• Increased investment in production of health workers 
• Delivery of the 15% budgetary allocations pledged by African governments to improve the working conditions of health workers in rural areas and public health facilities
• Increased investment by global health initiatives in HRH development in Africa 

The organisations, from all fields of operation, were evaluated on a set of criteria that included innovation, effectiveness, impact and sustainability. They were further assessed on transparency and accountability, strategic and financial management, as well as efficiency and value for money. The nominees were also subjected to reviews by peer organisations.

The 2012 Top 100 Best NGOs is the first such international ranking that seeks to recognise the significant role of NGOs as influential agents of global change.

“From humanitarian relief to the environment, public health to education, microfinance to intellectual property, NGOs are increasingly at the forefront of developments shaping the lives of millions of people around the world,” noted Deputy Editor Alexis Kalagas. The list, he added, would “no doubt stimulate debate, while providing academics, diplomats, policymakers, international organisations and the private sector an insight into the ever changing dynamics and innovative approaches of the non-profit world and its leading actors”.

The Global Journal, he said, had sought to move beyond outdated notions of what NGOs are about. “The cliché of faith or service-based organisations from rich countries selflessly dedicating themselves to the relief and betterment of the world’s impoverished and downtrodden is just that – a tired stereotype – if it were ever true at all.” Many local NGOs, he said, are showing their better-resourced counterparts how to work effectively, sustainably, and in true partnership with the communities they serve.

AMREF Director General Dr Teguest Guerma was delighted with the recognition. “We are very pleased to have been selected among the top 100 NGOs in this inaugural survey by the Global Journal,” she said, adding: “AMREF meets all the criteria listed. Our work is innovative and sustainable, and it has a real and lasting impact on communities in Africa.”

She noted that the Global Journal’s recognition of AMREF’s transparency and accountability, efficient use of funds and sound management will increase donor confidence in the organisation’s capacity and competence.

The ranking will also strengthen AMREF’s position as the leading NGO in Africa. “AMREF will use this position to help strengthen other NGOs working in health in Africa so that they can work more efficiently to achieve lasting health change in African communities,” said Dr Guerma.

http://theglobaljournal.net/top100NGOs/

Make Childbirth a Matter of Joy – Not Life or Death – for African Women

In the strong belief that no woman should die giving life, AMREF launched the international Stand Up for African Mothers campaign in October this year to draw attention to the plight of African mothers and to mobilise citizens worldwide to ensure that mothers get the basic medical care they need during pregnancy and childbirth. No child should be left an orphan due to lack of health care for women.

The Stand Up for African Mothers campaign aims to train 15,000 midwives by 2015 and contribute towards reduction of maternal deaths by 25%. Without basic medical care that women in developed countries take for granted, maternal mortality remains a heavy burden in sub-Saharan Africa where:

• 200,000 mothers die every year due to a lack of simple medical care
• 1.5 million African children are left motherless each year
• 40% of African women do not receive prenatal care, and more than half of all deliveries take place at home without medical assistance

Once trained, a single midwife can provide care for 500 women every year, including safe delivery of 100 babies 

African Midwives Protect the Heart of African Communities

Recognising that women and mothers are at the very heart of African communities, the Stand Up for African Mothers campaign will support the highly symbolic candidacy of an African midwife, Esther Madudu, for the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize.

“African women are at the centre of the social and economic development chain. The death of a mother while giving birth is a big setback for African society. Through the training of more midwives, AMREF is helping to deliver an immediate, sustainable solution. A healthy Africa needs healthy mothers, and African mothers need African midwives.”

– Dr Teguest Guerma, Director General, AMREF

How You Can Stand Up For African Mothers

By signing the online petition at www.standupforafricanmothers.com, you can take a stand for African mothers and midwives, giving them a voice with governments and international organisations. The goal is to have 100,000 signatures from people around the world who are standing up for African mothers. 

By making a donation or sponsoring a midwife, you can personally contribute to the training, funding and equipment needed to help reduce maternal mortality in Africa.

“I can’t bear to see women in my village die when I  know so many mothers and babies could be saved with my help. This keeps me strong, although I work long hours. Thanks to the training from AMREF, I can manage complicated deliveries, so I am able to care for women who might otherwise have died in the absence of a doctor.”

–      Esther Madudu, government-employed midwife and AMREF’s nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize 2015

More at www.standupforafricanmothers.com

A total of 15 participants from Africa, Europe and India will be taking part in a workshop, which runs from January 29 to 31 at the Goethe Insitut in Nairobi. Each participant come to the workshop with a project on a specific social issue during which they will be advised and assisted by a team of experts to develop their project in a professional way, enriching it with new media tools, such as participatory video, mobile phone filming, web and cross-platform documentaries.

“It is very important that NGOs learn how to communicate to professionals in the audiovisual field and vice-versa to enable them to make products that can have a social impact on and that communicate to (and possibily entertain) large audiences,” says Angelo Loy, Head of Studies at Esodoc International.

Participatory Video allows participants to use video equipment to be creative and tell their own stories about different issues. Video is used to aid learning and engagement. The process of film making is as important as the film itself, since both can be used as a means to greater participation.

ESoDoc International is a training initiative aimed to support filmmakers, new media professionals and NGO collaborators in the development of social documentary projects suitable for the international markets. It is organised by ZeLIG-School for Documentary, Television and New Media (Italy) in collaboration with AMREF (Kenya/Italy) and Formedia (India). It is financed by the European Union's Media Mundus Programme.

AMREF has been a pioneer in the field of participatory video through its Dagoretti Child in Need Project with the support of AMREF Italy, and also through a Participatory Video Monitoring and Evaluation project funded by AMREF Netherlands.

The participatory video project in Dagoretti began in 2001 following a critical review of the role and means of information on the issue of street children. Participatory Video is strongly interlinked with the rehabilitation process of the children, giving the boys and girls a greater degree of consciousness and self-assuredness. It has also proved to be a very powerful communication tool on sensitive issues within the community, as well as being a documentation tool.

More than 250 street children and other vulnerable children in Dagoretti have been rehabilitated through videography and are now living with their families. The initiative has improved the children’s participation in global and local issues, and created a desire for learning and development. They have gained confidence and self esteem, moulding them into accountable leaders who are able to communicate their perspectives on issues affecting them and their communities. 

View the festival's Schedule Scheme, International Participants and Films Synopsis

For more information about ESoDoc International visit http://international.esodoc.org

Dr Alemayehu, 46, was shot dead by unknown killers on the evening of Saturday, January 14, at the gate of his house in Malakia area, on the outskirts of the capital city, Juba. The killers made off with his car and other personal belongings. The government of South Sudan immediately launched investigations into the incident. The vehicle Dr Seifu was driving was found on the Yambio-Juba road on Sunday afternoon with one occupant, who was arrested by police.

AMREF staff and Board members were informed of Dr Seifu’s death by the organisation’s Director General, Dr Teguest Guerma. “This is a very sad moment for the entire AMREF family and we stand in solidarity with Alemayehu's family and AMREF South Sudan staff during this very difficult moment,” she said. “We are working with the government of South Sudan on the matter to handle the situation and will keep you informed as we receive more information.”

Dr Guerma has assured AMREF staff in South Sudan that AMREF is making efforts to strengthen security measures for them and AMREF employees working in other countries.

Dr Seifu was appointed AMREF Country Director in South Sudan in January 2011, after serving as Deputy Country Director in Ethiopia, a position he held since September 2007.

Prior to joining AMREF, Dr Seifu, a medical doctor who held a Masters Degree in Public Health, worked with the World Health Organisation (WHO) as regional surveillance coordinator in Ethiopia Country Office, CARE International and Amhara Regional Health Bureau, Ethiopia. He is survived by a widow, Mrs Amsalework Tesfaye Seifu, a son Samuel Alemayehu, 15, and a daughter Betlehame Alemayehu, 12.
Messages of condolence have been pouring in from all over the world from colleagues and friends who knew and worked with Dr Seifu. In South Sudan the Ministers of Health both at State and Republic level visited AMREF staff and conveyed their condolences. Other messages of condolence were received from the South Sudanese Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Information.

Dr Seifu’s body was flown to Ethiopia on Sunday evening for burial on Monday at his home 100km from Addis Ababa City. AMREF was represented at the burial on Monday by Ms Mette Kjaer, Head of Programme Management, AMREF South Sudan M&E Officer Mr Arizi Primo and staff of AMREF Ethiopia led by Country Director Dr Joao Soares.

AMREF has assigned Dr Joseph Lipua, South Sudan Programme Manager, to run the office as arrangements are made for appointing an acting Country Director. Mr Steve Gikunda from AMREF headquarters has been sent to Juba for support and assistance. Gikunda worked in South Sudan for two years (2007-2008) as programme coordinator and is well versed with AMREF operations in the country.

 “This is a very difficult time for us all in AMREF and I thank everybody for the solidarity you have shown,” said Dr Guerma.

Africa is desperately short of doctors and nurses. So is much of Asia. In 57 countries, the situation is deemed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to be at crisis point; they have fewer than 2.3 nurses, doctors and midwives for every 1,000 people – too few to deliver the basic level of care needed.

But in contrast to some other developing world problems, this is an issue that really does affect all of us. The world needs an estimated 4.2 million more health workers.

Though nowhere near crisis point, the USA and Europe are also seriously short of health workers. The problems of poor countries are therefore exacerbated by doctors and nurses from developing nations moving to find better jobs and a better quality of life, given the pressure, tough conditions and low pay they can expect in their home countries.

In its 2006 report, the WHO estimated that 23% of doctors trained in sub-Saharan Africa are working in economically developed OECD countries. Canada and the United States, with only 10% of the global burden of diseases, have 37% of the world's health workers.

Dr Mubashar Sheikh, executive director of the Global Health Workforce Alliance (GHWA), set up in 2006 to pull together national governments and other organisations interested in promoting health, says this is "a truly global crisis". Health workers move not only to wealthier nations, but also within their own countries, from the countryside to the towns, seeking better working conditions and pay.

"Mobility is a human right," says Sheikh. "You can't stop people from moving. Our argument is that people have a right to move, but access to health is a human right too. There has to be a balance."

Unless things can be improved, says Sheikh, there will be little chance of meeting the UN's health-related millennium development goals (MDGs) by 2015, but the scale of the problem is daunting.

Of the 57 crisis countries, 36 are in sub-Saharan Africa, which is struggling with the MDG targets of cutting child deaths and the numbers of women who die in childbirth. Africa, which bears 24% of the global burden of disease, has just 3% of the health workforce, according to the WHO. An estimated 1.5 million extra health workers are needed across the continent. According to a 2005 estimate, 334,000 skilled birth attendants would need to be trained globally just to reach 72% of annual births.

This is why the global health movement has been moving in recent years away from treating diseases such as HIV/Aids in isolation to support for "health systems" in general. Five million people with HIV in developing countries are now on drugs to keep them alive, but one survey estimated the treatment programmes took up the services of 20-50% of all health workers in two countries and 10% in a further 10. Today's thinking is that it makes no sense for a nurse to treat only HIV when the woman in front of her may have a child with pneumonia or a baby with life-threatening diarrhoea.

Improving health systems doesn't have to mean building smart hospitals, says Dr Sheikh. "We don't necessarily need fancy infrastructure," he says. The crucial part is well-trained and well-motivated people, who need to be able to access the drugs required and emergency care for patients. "There is a general consensus that health workers are the lifeline of the system." He includes not just the obvious doctor, nurse and midwife but also the lab technician, the theatre assistant, the researcher and the manager.

The global health workforce is now definitively on the agenda. In 2006, the WHO's annual report analysed the scope of the shortages and the way forward. For only the second time in the history of public health, WHO has now agreed a voluntary code – encouraging the training of health workers and attempting to place recruitment in an ethical framework. The last three G8 communiques recognised the crisis and committed to help poor countries. The US has pledged to support the training of 140,000 health workers, mostly in Africa, and Japan will support 100,000 more. Other countries including the UK have also made undertakings.

Most importantly, countries with shortages must find ways to train, motivate and retain more people. "Countries losing health workers need to give it top priority and keep the right environment and conditions which encourage health workers to stay within their own community," says Sheikh. It's not always about years of medical school – Ethiopia and Tanzania have made great strides by training large numbers of community health workers, who often do not want to move away.

Brian Rockliffe, the director of the charity VSO, says in his foreword to a report on health worker migration: "We believe that the sustainability of Africa's health systems, and the long-term effectiveness of international aid efforts to strengthen them, rests on finding a solution to the global mobility of Africa's health workforce."

The report, called Brain Gain: making health migration work for rich and poor countries, found that many health workers who had gone to work in richer countries would also, in fact, rather be at home. VSO talks of circular migration – making it attractive and possible for those who have left poor countries for Europe or the USA to return to a job that offers reasonable pay, without the stress involved in trying to treat too many people with too few drugs and inadequate equipment.

Fundamentally that means training more healthcare workers and finding more money to support them. If the MDGs are to be achieved and the global health worker shortage not to become still more acute, there is little alternative.

It is with deep shock and sorrow that I inform you of the sudden death of Dr Alemayehu Seifu who was the AMREF Country Director in South Sudan.

Dr Alemayehu was shot dead by unknown assasins on the evening of  Saturday, January 14, 2012 at the gate of his residence in Juba. This is a very sad moment for the entire AMREF family and we stand in solidarity with Alemayehu's family and all AMREF South Sudan Staff during this very difficult moment.

AMREF is working with the government of South Sudan to manage the situation and will keep all informed as we receive more information.

All the Best

Dr Teguest Guerma 

Dr Guerma gave the visitors a brief on AMREF and its work in Africa. She said that in addition to the six existing country programmes – Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Southern Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda – AMREF is in the process of setting up a country programme in Senegal as an entry into West Africa and francophone Africa. The organisation also plans to expand its presence in southern Africa.

Both Teguest and Mr Tooth are relatively new to their jobs, Teguest having joined AMREF in June 2010, and Mr Tooth being just six months old in Nairobi. “The thing that impressed me most about AMREF,” Teguest said, “was the fact that AMREF goes where nobody else goes, and is making a real difference in the lives of poor and neglected communities.”

She outlined the ongoing ‘One AMREF’ process, which will result in one business plan and one budget for the whole organisation, thus enabling savings and promoting cost-effectiveness.

Director of Capacity Building Dr Peter Ngatia presented a summary of AMREF’s strategy and areas of focus. “AMREF has decided to focus on women and children for the next three years because the heavy burden of disease primarily affects them. AMREF invests in making sure that health systems are functional, and in empowering communities to play their role because they have the solutions to their problems.”

Expounding on AMREF’s work with women and children, Dr John Nduba, Director of Reproductive and Child Health, noted that although there is still a lot of work to be done in the area, Africa is making progress. He gave an example of Ethiopia, where AMREF is helping the government to train community health workers and linking them to health facilities. The programme has caused tremendous changes in communities, eliminating childhood epidemics and facilitating a steady decline in maternal mortality. Diarrhoea and pneumonia, however, continue to exert a heavy toll, causing 20 per cent of childhood deaths.

AMREF’s strategies to reducing the deaths of mothers and children, Dr Nduba said, includes increasing the use of family planning, which is at only 30 per cent.” If every pregnancy is wanted, mothers and children will be healthy. If every woman knows and manages her body, she will be healthy. And if every child born grows to be an adult, African women will no longer feel the need to have many children,” he said. AMREF is therefore working to ensure that health systems are strong enough to provide information, family planning and other services whenever and wherever they are needed.

Dr Bettina Vadera, Medical Director of the Flying Doctor Emergency Services (FDES), highlighted the relationship between FDES and the Royal Flying Doctor’s Service (RFDS) of Australia. The Australian outfit has provided a lot of support and guidance to the FDES, she noted, which to a great extent is modelled on the RFDS. Funds raised by the service are used in AMREF’s surgical outreach programme, she explained, adding that AMREF is currently in the process of registering the FDES as a non-profit company to raise money for the organisation’s work.

Mr Tooth said he greatly admires AMREF’s work, which fits in very well with what the Australian government wants to do in East Africa, especially regarding maternal and child health.  He added that he was impressed with AMREF’s commitment to improve health for African communities and hoped it would be possible for some officials from the Australian government and even members of the public to visit AMREF projects and see the work that is being done on the ground.

Sue Graves, who has already been in discussions with Dr Nduba, said AusAID is keen on supporting AMREF’s Maternal and Child Health programme. She expressed a keen interest in working together with other AMREF partners for the success of the programme, noting that the ‘One AMREF’ strategy will ensure greater efficiency and effectiveness.

Spotlight on Southern Sudan's Referendum

EU and AMREF Put African Mothers, Newborns and Children First

Most believe the referendum will result in the South separating and creating Africa’s newest independent state.

AMREF's Work in southern Sudan

AMREF has a long history in Southern Sudan and a strong working relationship with the Government, particularly the Ministries of Health and Education.

AMREF staff on the ground are optimistic the vote will go smoothly, but we are also working closely with the United Nations coordinating plans for humanitarian interventions if needed.

Two decades of civil war in Southern Sudan, from 1983 to 2005, resulted in a tattered health system, a critical health worker shortage and some of the worst health indicators in the world.

AMREF began training clinical officers (health professionals trained for approximately half the time and at one fifth of the normal cost of training a physician that are able to carry out 70% of the work a physician does) at the Maridi National Health Training Institute and the Lui National Health Training Institute in Southern Sudan during the war. Though the training was disrupted during the fighting, AMREF continued to train clinical officers and community midwives in Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) controlled areas.

Following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that granted Southern Sudan semi-autonomy in 2005, AMREF, at the request of the Government of Southern Sudan, developed standardized curricula for the training of community midwives, clinical officers, nurses and community health workers. The standardization has helped the government to harmonize its training system.

Clinical Officers and other health personnel trained by AMREF, including public health and environmental officers, community midwives and nurses, are helping the Government of Southern Sudan to move towards its goal of taking good quality health care to its people so that they can be healthier and more productive.

Our Work In Pictures

Under the terms of the agreement, Chartis Insurance Company Limited will underwrite the Air Ambulance services provided by AMREF Flying Doctors to in-bound tourists, individual and corporate annual subscribers from the point of an incident from  anywhere within the East Africa region, including: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Zanzibar Ethiopia and Southern Sudan.

At a media briefing in Nairobi today, Dr Bettina Vadera, Chief Executive Officer and Medical Director of AMREF Flying Doctors, said “We are very happy to be working with Chartis Insurance on this exciting new project and look forward to drawing from their in-depth understanding and expertise in the medical insurance field. This agreement underlines AMREF Flying Doctors commitment to provide quality and affordable air evacuation services throughout the Eastern Africa region”

The AMREF Flying Doctors Team and fleet 

The signing of the new underwriting agreement is part of an on-going programme by AMREF Flying Doctors to expand and streamline its 55-year-old air ambulance service and is aimed at reaching more individuals and groups with affordable and high quality services.

Japh Olende, the Chartis Kenya Managing Director, expressed his confidence that the collaboration would enable more people in the region to access affordable travel insurance. At 2.1 per cent, insurance penetration was quite low in Kenya, he said, adding that only innovative and integrated approaches would help in ensuring more people take out insurance.

“This partnership opens a new channel of insurance distribution that has never been explored before in Kenya. Industry players should abandon the old ways of marketing and distributing their products and explore ways of reaching more clients,” he said.

Over the last five years, the demand for air evacuations in the region has been on a steady rise. In 2011, AMREF Flying Doctors flew almost 1,000,000 Miles (1.6 Million Kilometres) on evacuation missions – this being nearly twice the mileage recorded in 2006.  During the same year, patient evacuations increased to 1,254 – up from the previous record of 782 patients in 2010. 

Pregnancy continues to carry with it a high risk of death for both mother and child in some parts of the world and especially in the developing world.

Sub-Saharan Africa is now the epicentre of maternal mortality in the world. Current trends indicate that despite global, regional and national policies to improve Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) being in place, countries like Kenya are yet to attain their targets particularly for MDGs 4 and 5 to decrease child and maternal mortality.

Samburu County of Kenya’s Rift Valley Province, is no different. With a maternal mortality rate of 1000/100,000 births and an under-five child mortality rate approximated at 142/1,000 live births, nearly one third of the population has inadequate access to health, water and education services, as well as livelihood opportunities.

With funding from the European Union (EU), AMREF, in partnership with Samburu Aid in Africa (SAIDIA) the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation (MoPHS) and Ministry of Medical Services (MoMS) has launched a project, Strengthening Community Health Systems to Improve Maternal Newborn and Child Health Outcomes in Samburu County, that aims to contribute to poverty reduction in Samburu County, by accelerating the attainment of national and Millennium Development Goals MDG 4 (child health) and MDG 5 (maternal health) targets by 2015 by strengthening the linkages between the community health system and the formal health system.

AMREF and partners recognize that the greatest barrier to good health among poor communities in Kenya is the separation of communities from the formal health systems, combined with the low capacity and poor quality of the peripheral health systems. To bridge this gap and bring health closer to the people, the project proposes sustainable, innovative, pro-poor and community-based interventions that will link Samburu communities with the formal health systems in line with the Community Health Strategy.

Click on the image to view slideshow of the Samburu Launch

Dr. Lennie Bazira Kyomuhangi (in yellow) leads the celebrations at the Samburu MNCH launch

Speaking at the launch of the project at Kisima Dispensary Grounds in Samburu on November 18, 2011, AMREF Kenya Country Office Director Dr Lennie Bazira Kyomuhangi highlighted the fact that there are many disparities when it comes to health care in Samburu that need to be addressed. “Samburu has more than double the national average of maternal deaths and infant mortality and this is saddening. Childbirth should be a time of celebration for mothers and not to a time to mourn.”

Factors that predispose the people of Samburu to poor health include: high levels of malnutrition, poor access to and utilisation of MNCH services by women and children, low literacy levels, severely under-resourced health facilities and poor infrastructure among others.

Dr Kyomuhangi emphasised the fact that AMREF, in partnership with the government, implementing partners such as SAIDIA, the EU and the community, would work hand in hand to ensure that they touch the lives of more than 200,000 people living in Samburu. “Our main target is women and children and with this new project, we hope to improve the skills of health workers through training.” She assured the community that AMREF has the support of the donor community (which translated to availability of funds), its partners and the community, and therefore positive change was inevitable.

AMREF’s Director of Programme Development, Dr Rumishael Shoo reiterated AMREF’s commitment to improving the health of women and children by ensuring that mothers have adequate facilities where they can give birth and reduce infant and maternal deaths that occur as a result of complications at birth.

Also speaking at the launch, Mr Daniel Plas, Head of Social Affairs and Environment at the European Union (EU) Delegation to Kenya said, “We anticipate that after four years, we shall see progress in maternal and child health. I also hope that there will be less practice of FGM, better nourished children and fewer deaths as a result of complications at childbirth.”

Other guests present at the launch were Allyce Kureyia, SAIDIA Director; Marie Pedersen Haug, Health Sector, Environment and Natural Resource Management Officer at DANIDA, government representatives from the provincial administration represented by the area District Officer John Muchiri, a representative from the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation, Maureen Atieno representing the AMREF Kenya Advisory Council and members of AMREF Kenya’s Senior Management team.

The project will directly benefit 45,000 women of reproductive age and 25,000 children under- five years through improved Maternal Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) health outcomes.

Find out more about the Samburu MNCH Project.

Sounds of joyous celebration filled the air at the Maridi National Health Training Institute (NHTI) as relatives and friends rejoiced over the graduation of 145 students who had been taking various courses at the institute.

This was the 9^th graduation ceremony of the Institute, and the first in the newly independent Republic of South Sudan (RSS). The graduates were garlanded and praised in song by their loved ones as they received their diplomas and certificates from Dr Michael Milly Hussein, Minister of Health in Western Equatoria. They included 56 clinical officers, who were awarded diplomas on completion of their three-year course; 15 public health environmental officers, the first class to graduate in this course; and 74 community midwives. Also receiving their certificates from the minister were 27 certified community nurses from the neighbouring Nurse Training Institute.

AMREF opened the Maridi NHTI in 1998 at the height of the civil war in Sudan and has supported the school ever since. The first group of students graduated in 2001, and today, the institute trains clinical officers, community midwives, public health officers, and health tutors.

Click on the image below to view a slide show of the graduation ceremony

AMREF Midwives taking their vows during the 9th Maridi National Health Training Institute Graduation ceremony

 In his address, Dr Hussein noted that though South Sudan is the youngest republic in the world, it has among the worst health indicators in the world.  This is compounded by the fact that the country has very few trained health workers, poor sharing of health information and low service delivery, especially for women and children.

Said the minister: “It will require a great deal of combined effort between the government, non-governmental organisations and other partners to improve health in our country. I am overwhelmingly grateful to AMREF, who have been our friends in times of war and peace, for their contribution to the development of this nation. The graduation of these health workers today will contribute immensely to solutions to health problems in our country through increased health service delivery, especially to women and children.”

He challenged the graduates to continue improving their knowledge and skills because they have very important responsibilities. “In the battlefield you must be vigilante to fight disease. You must continue to learn because science is always changing, and much of the health care in your communities depends on you. I urge you to be committed and dedicated.”

Guests at the function included AMREF Director General Dr Teguest Guerma, who was accompanied by AMREF’s Director of Capacity Building Dr Peter Ngatia; Germany CEO Dr Marcus Leonhardt; Board member Prince Ludwig of Bavaria; South Sudan Country Director Dr Alemayehu Seifu; Director of Human Resources Mrs Nancy Muriuki; and Head of Programme Management Mrs Mette Kjaer. Government officials included Dr Makul, undersecretary in the South Sudan MOH and Dr Margaret Itto, Director General of Training and Professional Development.

Dr Guerma challenged the graduates to use the skills and knowledge they had acquired to bring lasting health change to their communities. She affirmed AMREF’s commitment to continuing the training health workers in South Sudan. “We are a dedicated partner of the Republic of South Sudan and we look forward to working together for many more years. We hope that the new government will take up its primary role of running the various training schools in the country, so that AMREF can strengthen its role in providing key technical support.”

She urged the ROSS to invest more in health if it wants to encourage donors to increase funding. “African governments must put more on the table to show their commitment to development, before expecting others to come and help them. We must take action first, break the ground and start building and then others will come to help us to complete the work.”

Dr Ngatia pointed out that the graduates were the result of concerted efforts of many stakeholders, including the AMREF family in Italy, USA, Germany, Spain, Austria and the Netherlands; UNFPA and WHO, and South’s Sudan’s Ministry of Health.

The three cadres of graduates, said Dr Ngatia, are at the front of the health care delivery system, and are often the only link to health care for families, particularly women and children. “Clinical officers in this country continue to provide the bulk of clinical, preventive and promotive services and will continue to do so for some time to come. The rough estimate of the need for 1,500 more in the next four years requires expansion of training capacity to ensure an annual graduation of no less than 300 per year.”

The same, he added, can be said of community midwives, and the public health environmental officers.  “Unless and until we have sufficient numbers of these cadres, who are well supported, the attainment of the mission of the MOH will remain unattainable, and the people will continue to be ravaged by diseases that could easily be managed and prevented.  As your friend and partner in health for over 30 years, AMREF encourages the MOH to consider creating ample fiscal space to ensure that the current health worker crisis does not deteriorate. We envision a time when there will be a health worker within reach for every South Sudanese. But we need to invest!”

A day earlier, Dr Guerma had officially handed over to the Minister of Health for Western Equatoria, Mr Stephan Komiagi, an outpatient department and laboratory renovated and equipped by AMREF. The facilities will be used by students from the NHTI for their practical training.

“AMREF is very pleased to have been instrumental in the renovation of these facilities. Next we will be working on the maternity wing and the paediatrics wing in support of women and children’s health, which is AMREF’s area of focus for the next three years, said Dr Guerma. Women and children, she explained, carry the heaviest burden of disease in our communities. “If women and children are healthy, then communities will be healthy. But AMREF also recognises that men are very important as the heads of families and communities, and so we have included men in all of AMREF’s programmes to ensure that they are successful.”

Dr Guerma said it was important for South Sudan to learn from the rest of Africa and not make the same mistakes that other countries have made. One such lesson, she said, was the importance of maintenance to ensure that infrastructure remained in good condition for the long service of the community.  

Dear All,

As we come to the end of the year, I want to thank partners, donors, friends and staff for their hard work, support and dedication throughout the past 12 months. It has been a very interesting year for AMREF, full of challenges as well as achievements.

The global economic downturn and subsequent shrinking of donor funds and the drought in eastern Africa constituted some of the major challenges. But there were many successes. We established a new office in  Senegal,  which  will  be  a  hub  to  cater  for  West  African Francophone countries. Through prudent financial management and aggressive fundraising, we managed to get rid of the huge financial gap with which we began the year and increase our funded budget by 20%. Another great and historical achievement was that we finally became ‘One AMREF’, with one governance structure, one Business Plan, one budget, one management and one brand. We developed and launched a 3 year business plan which will focus on improving the health of women and children.

The international Stand Up for African Mothers’ Campaign was launched in Deauville, France, together with AMREF’s nomination of a midwife for the Nobel Peace Prize.

This campaign will run across all AMREF offices, with the aim of raising funds for training midwives from Africans and non Africans who can save the lives of African mothers and children.

Because of our integrity and impressive track record of working in health in Africa, AMREF has continued to attract high-profile partnerships and donors. Both UNFPA and UNICEF have signed Memoranda of Understanding that will see them working and collaborating more with AMREF. GSK has chosen AMREF as the implementer of an innovative project to plough back 20 percent of profits made in Least Developed Countries. Danida and Ausaid joined AMREF as new donors.

Today, we can look back at our achievements with pride and continue building on our successes. But we must also ensure to learn from our mistakes so that we can have even bigger accomplishments and move to greater heights in 2012. Words that will define our work in 2012 include lasting health change in Africa, transformation, knowledgeable communities, strategic partnerships, technical excellence,  and last but not least, a united and integrated organisation.

It has been truly an honour for me to work with partners, friends, Board members and such a great team of professional and talented people this year. I go home every day delighted in the knowledge that we are making a real difference in Africa. I wish you all and your families happy Christmas holidays, and a prosperous and successful New Year.

Warm regards

Teguest Guerma

AMREF’s Outreach Progamme recently received a generous donation of different assortment of sutures from Synthecon, a South African manufacturer that was established in 2006 to create sutures that are both world class in quality but also affordable in price. The donations handed over by Dr Peter Karungu, Managing Director of the company and received by AMREF’s Director General Dr Teguest Guerma,  will go a long way in providing much needed surgical services to those in need in Africa over the next one year.

Speaking during the official presentation, Dr Guerma stressed the importance of African companies supporting African causes in health care . The Outreach Programme aims at treating patients who would otherwise not have access to the healthcare they need. The programme also trains local health teams in extremely rural areas to carry out this work themselves in the future. “The Outreach programme was started in 1957 and remains the hallmark of AMREF’s work and the legacy of the founding fathers, ” stated Dr Guerma.  The programme which has recently expanded to West Africa, South Sudan and Ethiopia provides a service that no other organisation is capable of providing- outreach to the hard to reach areas.

Dr Teguest Guerma receives a donation of surgical sutures from Dr Peter Karungu, MD Synthecon South Africa

Speaking during the same event, Dr Rumishael Shoo, Director Health Programmes Development, AMREF, reiterated that apart from the specialised outreach surgeons, AMREF has teams of highly specialised health practitioners from all over the world are constantly mobilized to assist in the outreach work and provide unique services that are not offered by other organisations. This also serves as a capacity building activity.

On his part, Dr Peter Karungu said that he was deeply moved by AMREF’s work and that is why he chose the organisation as a beneficiary. He said that Africans tend to be dependent on aid from the west while we ourselves are capable of helping each other. “We are poor because of our greed” he reflected.

Dr Karungu has committed to subsidising the price of sutures for AMREF. “AMREF touches the lives of women and children in Africa. By giving this small token, I too can touch their lives,” he said in closing.

The continued devastation HIV and AIDS, especially in Africa, provide an impetus to promote research and development strategies to combat the epidemic.

A special session at the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa yesterday, chaired by AMREF Director General Dr Teguest Guerma, focused on the significance of biomedical research conducted in Africa towards the African response to HIV and AIDS, and strategies to strengthen it.

Panelists in the discussion were renowned researcher and bacteriology virologist Prof Souleymane Mboup, co-discoverer of the HIV-2 virus and AMREF Board member; Dr Thomas Nyirenda, South-South Networking and Capacity Development Manager of the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership; and Prof Zvi Bentwich, Director of the NALA Foundation and Centre for Emerging Tropical Diseases and AIDS. Dr John Nkengasong, Assistant Director of the CDC’s laboratory programme co-chaired the session.

Opening the discussion, Dr Guerma noted that their biomedical research had made a crucial contribution to the fight against HIV and AIDS, including discovery of the virus, and important interventions like prevention of mother-to-child transmission, anti-retroviral treatment, highly active anti-retroviral treatment, male circumcision and microbicides. Yet, although African scientists and institutions had made significant contributions to HIV and AIDS investigations in collaboration with international institutions, there is still ample opportunity to further develop biomedical research that is specifically targeted towards HIV and AIDS in Africa.

Click on the image below to view a slideshow on the ICASA conference

Dr Mboup pointed out that Africa has the highest rates of prevalence and incidence of HIV and AIDS, which called for HIV prevention trials in Africa, with Africa-led studies.

Panelists cited several obstacles to development of biomedical research in Africa, including lack of infrastructure, limited numbers of researchers, low financial incentives for conducting research, brain drain as researchers found lucrative employment in the west, slow capacity building for research and total reliance on outside sources for funding.

Several recommendations were made for the way forward, including increasing numbers of highly trained and skilled researchers who will lead globally competitive, collaborative health research; well-equipped and enabling environments with incentives to stimulate the contributions and sustain the efforts of African researchers; investment in research to bring about greater returns than the cost of research programmes; and long-term planning and investment.

 AMREF @ ICASA Day 3

With the shrinking of traditional funding sources for development of health and other sectors in Africa, it is time for the continent to rethink its strategies towards achieving national and global targets. There must be a paradigm shift from the way development programmes have traditionally been funded – with donor support from the West – to new ways of mobilising resources on the continent to meet development needs.

Addressing a press conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, at the ongoing International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa, the Director General of AMREF, Dr Teguest Guerma, said that despite the reduction in donor funding, including funding for HIV and AIDS programmes, Africa still needs to aim for Zero infections, Zero discrimination and Zero deaths.

“Donor fatigue has set in, but we must still find new ways to meet these goals,” she said, adding that donor aid often has strings attached that do not allow Africa to pursue its own priorities. “Africa must look for new and innovative ways of sustaining HIV and AIDS programmes. We must find methodologies that are homegrown and do not have rigid and expensive conditionalities.”

Dr Guerma said that one avenue of raising funds is through mobilisation of resources from within the continent. “We must put something on the table before we ask others to support us.” She cited the example of AMREF’s international Stand Up for African Mothers Campaign launched in October this year to raise awareness and funds for training more midwives in order to reduce the deaths of women and children on the continent. AMREF, she explained, would like to raise one dollar from every African. “Imagine if every African gave one dollar to this cause – we could stop very many women from dying!”

 Click on the image below to view a slideshow on the ICASA conference

Public-private partnerships are another way to finance development, Dr Guerma said. “Africa is the next continent for new investment and new business. But here it should not be business as usual,” she declared. In the West, she said, investors grow their profits and markets through advertisements and sales, but in Africa, they must invest in the communities which they want to buy their products and services to ensure that the people are healthy, and are therefore able to work and buy their products, hence market growth. “It is about shared responsibility and shared value, a win-win situation for all.”

Dr Guerma went on to say that conventional Corporate Social Responsibility is primarily aimed at publicity and market growth for the private sector using one-off projects that do not have any real  or lasting impact on the communities, but what Africa needs are models of investment in both the people and in market growth.

She cited AMREF’s eLearning course for nurses, which is a partnership between the Government of Kenya, technological consulting firm Accenture, and AMREF. Another example is the Personal Hygiene and Sanitation Programme (PHHASE), for schools, which arose from a partnership between GlaxoSmithKline, the Government of Kenya, and AMREF, and which has been replicated and scaled up in several countries in Africa and beyond.

Stressing the importance of innovation and the need to think outside the box, Dr Guerma said that AMREF, as a non-profit organisation, had turned AMREF’s Flying Doctors evacuation and air ambulance service into non-profit business to raise funds for the organisation’s activities, and more similar avenues are being sought.

She concluded with a challenge for governments to be made accountable for use of available resources. “Civil society should also be accountable in the way we use the money that comes to us for development and must pressurise governments to be more accountable,” she added. The media too, she said, has an important role in demanding accountability.

More Articles on the ICASA

First Ladies of Africa vow to push for an HIV-free generation

African Leaders press for Homegrown Solutions to the AIDS epidemic in Africa

 AMREF @ ICASA Day 2

Africa could have an HIV-free generation if prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) services are made universally accessible and if further prevention measures, such as condom use and promotion of abstinence, are taken to avoid infection among young people.

The first ladies of Africa, under the auspices of the Organisation of African First Ladies against HIV and AIDS (OAFLA), have vowed to take a lead in pushing for an HIV-free generation individually in their respective countries, and jointly across the continent.

“Having realised the powers vested in them and the crucial role they can play in the fight against HIV, first ladies have decided to create their own national action plans, which are aligned to the national priorities of their countries,” said Mrs Penehupifo Pohamba, First Lady of Namibia and President of OAFLA.

Click on the image below to view a slideshow on the ICASA conference

Mrs Phohamba made the remarks during a first ladies’ panel discussion at the ongoing International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA 2011) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She outlined activities in Namibia that have yielded returns in reducing HIV infections, key among them male involvement in PMTCT and exclusive breastfeeding. “Male partners are very important for outcomes of health in the family. It is important to involve them not just at the testing stage for HIV, but at all stages of the continuum of care,” she stressed. The First Lady said that Namibia’s efforts had resulted in 97 percent of babies born to HIV-positive women being free of the virus. 

Representatives of the first ladies of Chad, Rwanda and Ethiopia highlighted activities in their countries that have resulted from their advocacy for effective solutions to respond to HIV and AIDS, as well as against stigma and discrimination.

Rwandan Minister for Health Dr Agnes Binagwaho, representing First Lady Jeannette Kagame who could not make it to the meeting due to a flight delay, said that Rwanda’s national PMTCT scale-up plan had so far resulted in 82 percent of the country’s 450 health facilities providing full PMTCT packages to women. PMTCT has also been integrated in child health programmes. As a result, 70 percent of children born to HIV-positive women have received early diagnosis.

“Rwanda is hopeful of eliminating HIV because we know how to do it, we have the drugs and we have the facilities. But we also need to identify strong prevention strategies and find ways to reduce stigma. To do this, we must re-evaluate those of our social and cultural practices that slow down or hinder response to HIV and AIDS initiatives,” she said.

Speaking on behalf of Ethiopian First Lady Azeb Mesfin, Ms Netsanet Asfaw, Director of the Peace and Security Division of the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development, said that the women of Ethiopia have been tackling the challenges of HIV and AIDS in a holistic manner through a vast network of government officials, professionals, civil society, farmers and pastoralists under the umbrella of the National Coalition of Women against HIV and AIDS.

One of the coalition’s activities is a campaign named ‘ No woman should die giving birth’ which was rolled out through Community Health Extension Workers, who are found in every village in the vast country. The campaign, according to the health ministry, was to be the start of a long-term mobilisation initiative extending to 2015 in line with the Millennium Development Goals.

It aims to raise public awareness and facilitate dialogue on the importance of improving maternal health in order to reduce the deaths of women and children.

“Ethiopia’s Afar region is also the first in the world to declare female genital mutilation ‘haram’ (forbidden in Islam),” said Ms Asfaw. This was a very significant move, she explained, because the Afar region is where female genital mutilation was practised in its severest form. The success was the result of a three-year campaign by the National Coalition of Women, led by First Lady Azeb Mesfin, and it had brought together religious and community leaders, traditional birth attendants and victims into dialogue that resulted in the historic declaration.

Mrs Phohamba noted that despite the successes, there is still a lot more that the first ladies can do to ensure that the goal of an HIV-free generation is achieved.

More Articles on the ICASA

Innovation Key in addressing HIV and AIDS

African Leaders press for Homegrown Solutions to the AIDS epidemic in Africa

December 3, 2011

AMREF will on 2^nd December, 2011 hold it's 25^th Graduation ceremony at the International Training Centre in Nairobi.

AMREF builds the capacity of health workers in collaboration with Local and international universities as well as other NGOs to contribute to the scaling up of Africa’s human resource for health. The Directorate of Capacity Building is partnering with Nursing Council of Kenya to upgrade enrolled nurses through the eLearning Model. This Model is also being replicated in Uganda and Tanzania.  

The directorate is also recognized as a Continuous Professional Development provider by the Medical Practitioners and Dentist Board.

This year, 1,092 health and development workers from 20 African countries have been trained in over 23 short courses for continuous professional development. In this graduation, 49 health and development workers will be graduating with a certificate in Monitoring and evaluation. 86 nurses will also be graduating from the AMREF Virtual School and 12 health workers from six African countries will be graduating with diplomas in community health which is accredited to Moi University. 

The directorate is also partnering with Kenya Methodist University to train health workers for a Bachelor of Science in community health and with Moi University for Master of Public Health.

HIV and AIDS remains one of the top public health threats in Africa. At the end of 2010, approximately 75% of 34 million people living with HIV came from sub-Saharan Africa, where AMREF operates. Women are more vulnerable than men; 60% of people infected with HIV in Africa are women.

World AIDS Day is observed on December 1 every year to focus the world’s attention on AIDS. It provides an opportunity for people across the globe to unite in the fight against HIV, to show their support for people living with the virus and to remember those who have died. As Africa’s leading health development organisation working with communities, AMREF shares this year’s global theme of ‘getting zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths’. ­

The proportion of pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa who were tested for HIV increased from 43% in 2008 to 51% in 2009, significant progress in one year (WHO/UNICEF 2010). AMREF has trained huge numbers of health care providers in Africa on Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission, Voluntary Counselling and Testing and Anti-Retroviral Therapy. For the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV; AMREF and its partners continue to pay maximum attention to  expanding and sustaining  PMTCT programmes in fixed health facilities and outreach programmes.

Homophobia, stigma and discrimination still persist and negatively affect the health and well-being of Men Having Sex with Men, and other most-at-risk populations. AMREF’s work involves distribution of community-focused information and education materials for the reduction of stigma associated with HIV and AIDS, and strengthening the capacity of district and community structures to promote sexual and other behavioural risk reduction interventions. AMREF and its partners address this issue at different levels of society, including government bodies, health care settings, work places and schools in order to increase opportunities for improving the health of most at risk populations and ensuring equal access to health services. AMREF will increase advocacy with governments for development of unbiased policies for most-at-risk populations so that they can enjoy equal status in the society.

AMREF advocates for universal access to ARV to all eligible patients and for more research to be done on ARV prevention and treatment. AMREF has mobilised resources from the Global Fund, PEPFAR and others donors for the expansion of universal access to ARVs. A recent study funded by the National Institutes of Health has confirmed that treating HIV-positive people with ARV drugs reduces the risk of transmitting the virus to HIV-negative sexual partners by 96%.

Encouraging data from UNAIDS shows that new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths have fallen to the lowest levels and more than 6.6 million people now have access to HIV treatment. However, these gains are threatened by a decline in resources available for HIV prevention and treatment in low- and middle-income countries. This could now be further aggravated by the recently revised resource forecast, which shows a shortfall in funding available through the Global Fund.

To contribute towards achievement of the core global goals, AMREF calls upon national governments, institutional donors and the private sector to continue supporting the fight against HIV and AIDS. The job is only half done. We cannot stop until we ensure that there is lasting health change in the lives of African communities, by stopping the spread of HIV, and ensuring access to health care and support for those who are affected and infected.

Dr Abebe Aberra

AMREF Programme Leader, HIV/AIDS/TB

“Tunaomba usaidizi (we need your help),” he shouts to some men who are grazing nearby despite the heavy downpour. Stones are heaped under the vehicle, and after an hour of pushing and shoving, the car is back on the road.

The dirt road is now a pool of water, and we are soaked to our briefs. “I am afraid we will not make our way into all the areas we intended to go. The roads will be impassable,” says AMREF project officer in Kaloleni, Joseph Karisa Mwakombe.

I have no objection, because as it is, flash floods have taken over the roads, and we have to wait for hours at a time before we can make our way onto the other side of the road.

Talk about a story of contrasts. One day it is as dry as a bone and the next thing you know, the land is one big pool of water.  I am here to look at the impact of the drought situation but now I am thinking the likely story is one about flooding!

But as I am reminded at a meeting at the Kaloleni District office, close to 38,000 people in the area will still be reliant on food aid at least until February when their harvest is due. “That is if the rain does not disappoint like other seasons,” says Kaloleni District officer 1. Mr. Daniel K. Mwenda.

For close to six months, the locals had been brought to their knees as crops failed and most earth dams dried up. This meant that the government and donors had to replenish the plates of the most vulnerable, while organisations like AMREF did water tankering to some schools.

“We realised that our normal programmes could not continue when people are hungry. The school feeding programme was failing as there was no water and in most schools, children had to carry water for use at the schools. Fetching this water took up a lot of time as most dams were up to 12km away,” says Mwakombe. In total, 12 schools were catered for in Kaloleni, Kilifi, and Malindi while 12 tanks have been ordered for distribution to the affected schools.

In the present, things might be looking up in terms of food supply, but as the public health officer, Ali Shehi says, water borne diseases peak at this time. “When it rains diarrhoea cases shoot up because many people are still not using toilets and often, the water they collect for domestic use is untreated,” says the Public Health Officer in charge of Tsangatsini location. Latrine coverage is between 14-29 percent in Kaloleni according to research and often open defecation finds its way to water sources. 

While Bendera Ayiere Teri celebrates the coming of rain, she is also apprehensive. The mother of three is at Tsangatsini Dispensary with her children who are suffering from the common cold and dysentery. “I know about boiling water, but I do not have the time or enough firewood to do so,” says the woman who survived the dry times by burning and selling charcoal.

It is an attitude that has the authorities and AMREF worried as statistics show that water borne diseases tip in rainy seasons. “Amoeba and upper respiratory disease cases are on the rise,” reports Thomas Ngowa, a nurse at Tsangatsini dispensary.  According to his records, the top three diseases are now, Diarrhoea, Malaria and upper track respiratory diseases.

That is why hygiene promotion in the community is so important. AMREF Project Manager, Eric Kariuki, says that while having water is important, in order to cut on the disease burden, it is crucial that the water is clean and safe, the community uses toilets and they know how to maintain personal hygiene. AMREF, through its WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) project, has been targeting school children to ensure that they act as change agents in their community.

One school that has benefitted from the initiative is Ndatani Primary school, in which AMREF built six latrines, pioneered a health club, helped build classrooms besides providing two water tanks and water tankering during the drought period.  

“If it was not for AMREF, I do not know where we would be,” says the school’s head teacher, Alphoce Katungo. Through AMREF’s support, the school has seen dropout and absenteeism rates decrease while enrolment levels and exam performance have gone up.  “When we started the school we had 300 pupils, now our pre-schoolers total 260,” the head teacher shares. The public school opened its doors in 1998 and has a total of 560 pupils.

But while school enrolment rates are going up, poverty levels are also increasing within the district. Erratic weather patterns, a high birth rate, cultural beliefs, an upsurge in diseases like HIV/AIDS and TB, and low literacy levels are just some of the reasons given for the region's dependency on aid. It does not help that most residents are dependent on charcoal burning during dry weather periods which contributes to desertification or that even when it rains; good seedlings that would guarantee a good crop are still a preserve of the rich.   

Most times, it means that even when the rain comes, little reprieve is gotten. Such is the tale of 36-year-old pregnant mother-of-four, Kache Karisa. The peasant farmer, whose family has had to contend with one meal per day since her crop failed last November, still does not have access to seedlings that would help her harvest enough in her 3-acre-plot.

“I got the maize seeds from my neighbours. I could not afford cowpea or vegetable seeds. They are way too expensive,” she says. Kache’s family now lives on the proceeds from the sale of charcoal.

At the local market, drought resistant maize seeds cost Kshs 450 (US$4.5), while hybrid seeds cost Kshs 250-300 (US$ 2.5-3) per 2 kilograms. Cowpea seeds cost Kshs 120 (US$1.2) per kg. This is way out of the financial reach of people like Kache, who survive on Kshs 200 (US$2) per day.

“The money is not even enough for food. The price of foodstuffs has really shot up and I have to buy maize flour at sh120 (US$1.2),” says Karisa who shares a one-roomed mud house with the rest of her family.

For real gains to be achieved in the community, experts call for a multi-faceted approach. “Anything that will improve literacy levels will be a good move. It is difficult to drive a point on sanitation and hygiene issues in a family where the parents are poorly educated,” says Mwakombe.

A focus on micro finance is another solution that would get the community into gainful investment, instead of cutting down trees for charcoal; while Kariuki thinks mechanisation of agriculture and efforts towards manageable families would do the community good.

“There is need to construct 4-5 huge earth dams in the area. As you can see during the rainy season, there is a lot of water that ends up in the ocean. It is a waste. This water would be used for farming even during the dry times which are now becoming more frequent,” foresees Kariuki. 

The Uganda Medical Laboratory Technology Association (UMLTA) has selected the African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF) in Uganda as the first winner of the Khadil Award of excellence in Medical Laboratory Service. This is in recognition of the enormous contribution the organization has made in promoting excellence in Medical Laboratory Service delivery in Uganda over the years.

The award was given during the 29th scientific conference of UMLTA which took place on 24th November 2011 at the Colline Hotel – Mukono, Central Uganda. This year’s theme for the conference focused on maternal health which is in line with AMREF’s focus for the next three years as articulated in the AMREF business plan 2011-2014. 

The possible beneficiaries of Khadil Award are organizations or individuals working to promote Medical Laboratory Services delivery and that have contributed tremendously to the development of Medical Laboratory Services in Uganda.

The award was presented to the AMREF in Uganda Country Director, Joshua Kyallo by Commissioner of quality assurance Ministry of Health Dr. Mwebaze on behalf of the Minister of Health.

AMREF Flying Doctors is extremely proud to be the winner of this year’s prestigious Air Ambulance Provider of the Year Award.

The ITIJ (International Travel Insurance Journal) yearly awards are voted for by over 50.000 readers of ITIJ and other stakeholders within the international industry, representing the global travel/ medical insurance industry, air ambulance providers, underwriters to assistance companies and cost containment entities.

The companies with the most votes go through to be award finalists and each one submits a presentation to an independent judging panel, which decides on the ultimate winner based on achievements and outstanding performances throughout the year, as well as overall development, expansion and future vision. Each finalist also has to produce and submit a 45 second film clip that is presented at the price giving ceremony.

The award was announced and presented at the Gala Dinner during the International Travel Insurance Conference in Lisbon, Portugal on 3^rd of November 2011 and received on behalf of AMREF Flying Doctors by CEO & Medical Director Dr Bettina Vadera and COO Sean Culligan.

In front of 600 delegates, representing 54 countries worldwide, the award to AMREF Flying Doctors was greeted with cheers and a standing ovation from the audience who appreciate the professionalism and respect the work carried out by AMREF Flying Doctors both regionally and internationally.

www.itij.co.uk