Sub Saharan Africa Research Papers (original) (raw)

When expatriate doctors from developed countries working in sub-Saharan Africa suggest to the local doctors and midwives that symphysiotomies should sometimes be done, they are silenced neither with quotations from the medical literature... more

When expatriate doctors from developed countries working in sub-Saharan Africa suggest to the local doctors and midwives that symphysiotomies should sometimes be done, they are silenced neither with quotations from the medical literature nor with tales of patients seen, but with: “If symphysiotomies are such good operations why don't you perform them at home?” Here is why.

Background Effective case management is central to reducing malaria mortality and morbidity worldwide, but only a minority of those affected by malaria, have access to prompt effective treatment. In Kenya, the Division of Malaria Control... more

Background Effective case management is central to reducing malaria mortality and morbidity worldwide, but only a minority of those affected by malaria, have access to prompt effective treatment. In Kenya, the Division of Malaria Control is committed to ensuring that 80 percent of childhood fevers are treated with effective anti-malarial medicines within 24 hours of fever onset, but this target is largely unmet. This review aimed to document evidence on access to effective malaria treatment in Kenya, identify factors that influence access, and make recommendations on how to improve prompt access to effective malaria treatment. Since treatment-seeking patterns for malaria are similar in many settings in sub-Saharan Africa, the findings presented in this review have important lessons for other malaria endemic countries. Methods Internet searches were conducted in PUBMED (MEDLINE) and HINARI databases using specific search terms and strategies. Grey literature was obtained by soliciting reports from individual researchers working in the treatment-seeking field, from websites of major organizations involved in malaria control and from international reports. Results The review indicated that malaria treatment-seeking occurs mostly in the informal sector; that most fevers are treated, but treatment is often ineffective. Irrational drug use was identified as a problem in most studies, but determinants of this behaviour were not documented. Availability of non-recommended medicines over-the-counter and the presence of substandard anti-malarials in the market are well documented. Demand side determinants of access include perception of illness causes, severity and timing of treatment, perceptions of treatment efficacy, simplicity of regimens and ability to pay. Supply side determinants include distance to health facilities, availability of medicines, prescribing and dispensing practices and quality of medicines. Policy level factors are around the complexity and unclear messages regarding drug policy changes. Conclusion Kenya, like many other African countries, is still far from achieving the Abuja targets. The government, with support from donors, should invest adequately in mechanisms that promote access to effective treatment. Such approaches should focus on factors influencing multiple dimensions of access and will require the cooperation of all stakeholders working in malaria control.

Forty-three Shigella sonnei isolates from adult patients with diarrhoea in Dakar were analysed for the presence of integrons. Isolates were resistant to sulphamethoxazole, trimethoprim, tetracycline, streptomycin and spectinomycin. A high... more

Forty-three Shigella sonnei isolates from adult patients with diarrhoea in Dakar were analysed for the presence of integrons. Isolates were resistant to sulphamethoxazole, trimethoprim, tetracycline, streptomycin and spectinomycin. A high prevalence of class 2 integrons (93%) was found. These integrons showed three distinct structures: a class 2 integron, part of the Tn7 family and its derivatives, carrying four cassettes in the order dfrA1-sat-aadA1-orfX; a truncated class 2 integron, without orfX; and a third type ca. 4 kb in size. These class 2 integrons probably play a role in the spread of multiresistance in S. sonnei isolates. To our knowledge, this is the first description of class 2 integrons in S. sonnei isolated in sub-Saharan Africa.

A three period overlapping generations model is developed to investigate the impact of shorter life expectancy due to disease, on human capital investment decisions and income growth. This research is particularly relevant to Sub-Saharan... more

A three period overlapping generations model is developed to investigate the impact of shorter life expectancy due to disease, on human capital investment decisions and income growth. This research is particularly relevant to Sub-Saharan Africa given the dramatic reduction in life expectancy due to HIV/AIDS and the potential lasting effects on growth. Our results indicate that as life expectancy shortens so does schooling inducing a lower growth rate of income. These relationships are even more pronounced for the African continent than for the rest of the world.

Conventional growth theories in the literature explain the poor economic performance of African economies by stressing the inadequacy of savings, human capital, and poor institutional quality. However, the key question is how to enhance... more

Conventional growth theories in the literature explain the poor economic performance of African economies by stressing the inadequacy of savings, human capital, and poor institutional quality. However, the key question is how to enhance savings for the accumulation of both physical and human capital in order to spur growth. A common thread that runs through the existing models is that the dependency ratio, not only remains constant over time, but has no long-run negative impact on economic growth. By relaxing this rigid assumption, this paper constructs a growth estimating equation which accommodates this demographic factor. The analytic results from the modified model suggest that economies with high dependency ratio face their stable equilibrium at lower levels of their income per capita. Moreover, econometric results from analysis of panel data drawn from Sub-Saharan Africa economies suggest that the growth puzzle can be well explained in terms of the demographic factors, especia...

One of the most important and crucial debates in the world today is how to provide sufficient food for over seven billion people in the world. In 2019, 690 million people were suffering from hunger globally while about 135 million people... more

One of the most important and crucial debates in the world today is how to provide sufficient food for over seven billion people in the world. In 2019, 690 million people were suffering from hunger globally while about 135 million people in 55 countries and territories were suffering from acute food insecurity with Africa accounting for 73 million of this figure. Food insecurity is one of the major challenges of most African governments occasioned by an increasing number of people living in extreme poverty, high-level corruption, incidences of conflicts/terrorism, low level of human capital and unfavorable climate change in the region. Nigeria has the highest number of people living in extreme poverty globally. The Global Food Security Index (GFSI) rank of Nigeria has been on the increase since 2013 while it was ranked 94th among 113 countries in 2019. Nigeria is facing the challenge of food insecurity, especially in the northeastern and north-central states where conflicts/insurgen...

The objective of this study was to establish the effects of dividend announcement to current market prices at the Nairobi Securities Exchange, with four specific objectives; to determine the information content of dividend announcements,... more

The objective of this study was to establish the effects of dividend announcement to current market prices at the Nairobi Securities Exchange, with four specific objectives; to determine the information content of dividend announcements, to determine the extent to which prices converge to new values after dividend announcements on a sector by sector basis, to establish the market reaction to announced information and also to establish whether investors can secure excess returns by acting on announced information. A 66 days event timeline was employed from 2005 to 2015 on daily closing stock prices. A sample of 179 dividend announcements from 22 listed companies in 8 sectors were drawn and analysed using an OLS Market Model. Findings of the research conclude that; dividend announcements do have an impact on stock prices for the Agricultural, Banking, Commercial, Construction, Manufacturing and Telecomm Sectors and not for the Energy Sector, Insurance Sector and the Nairobi Securities...

Our case studies of the evolution of population policies in Kenya and Malawi offer insights into the interaction between the global population movement and national governments. The comparison is useful because it permits identifying the... more

Our case studies of the evolution of population policies in Kenya and Malawi offer insights into the interaction between the global population movement and national governments. The comparison is useful because it permits identifying the common strategies of a global movement, strategies that are likely to be evident elsewhere; it also permits identifying differences in national responses related to particular

Page 1. Neuropsychological Assessment and Intervention with African Americans Introduction NINA A. NABORS, JOVIER D. EVANS, AND TONY L. STRICKLAND 3 Attempts to address the impact of race and ethnicity on human behavior have increased in... more

Page 1. Neuropsychological Assessment and Intervention with African Americans Introduction NINA A. NABORS, JOVIER D. EVANS, AND TONY L. STRICKLAND 3 Attempts to address the impact of race and ethnicity on human behavior have increased in recent years. ...

Conventional growth theories in the literature explain the poor economic performance of African economies by stressing the inadequacy of savings, human capital, and poor institutional quality. However, the key question is how to enhance... more

Conventional growth theories in the literature explain the poor economic performance of African economies by stressing the inadequacy of savings, human capital, and poor institutional quality. However, the key question is how to enhance savings for the accumulation of both physical and human capital in order to spur growth. A common thread that runs through the existing models is that the dependency ratio, not only remains constant over time, but has no long-run negative impact on economic growth. By relaxing this rigid assumption, this paper constructs a growth estimating equation which accommodates this demographic factor. The analytic results from the modified model suggest that economies with high dependency ratio face their stable equilibrium at lower levels of their income per capita. Moreover, econometric results from analysis of panel data drawn from Sub-Saharan Africa economies suggest that the growth puzzle can be well explained in terms of the demographic factors, especia...

Malaria not only remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, but it also impedes socioeconomic development, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Rapid and unprecedented urbanization, going hand-in-hand with often declining... more

Malaria not only remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, but it also impedes socioeconomic development, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Rapid and unprecedented urbanization, going hand-in-hand with often declining economies, might have profound implications for the epidemiology and control of malaria, as the relative disease burden increases among urban dwellers. Reviewing the literature and using a modeling approach, we find that entomologic inoculation rates in cities range from 0 to 54 per year, depending on the degree of urbanization, the spatial location within a city, and overall living conditions. Using the latest United Nations figures on urbanization prospects, nighttime light remotely sensed images, and the "Mapping Malaria Risk in Africa" results on climate suitability for stable malaria transmission, we estimate that 200 million people (24.6% of the total African population) currently live in urban settings where they are at risk of contracting ...

Different types of conflict have different effects on the financial system. Country priorities for reconstruction therefore vary accordingly. Nevertheless, the following problems repeatedly occur in reconstruction. First, central banks... more

Different types of conflict have different effects on the financial system. Country priorities for reconstruction therefore vary accordingly. Nevertheless, the following problems repeatedly occur in reconstruction. First, central banks often remain weak and under-resourced. The ...

Budgetary capacity that would allow for the public funding of the provision of universal access to primary education is lacking in many sub-Saharan economies. National revenues significantly lag behind the overall economic productivity... more

Budgetary capacity that would allow for the public funding of the provision of universal access to primary education is lacking in many sub-Saharan economies. National revenues significantly lag behind the overall economic productivity measure of GDP. Analysis of data derived from UNESCO and UNDP for 2004 shows that governments in the region spend far less in US dollars per unit cost on primary education than do developed countries. Increasing the unit cost of education in order to enable a government to guarantee universal primary education would take away resources from other tiers of the education system in many countries in the region. The alternative is to universalise access, despite existing budget allocation constraints, and thereby further compound the problems of poor infrastructure and limited human resource capacity that continue to compromise education quality in sub-Saharan Africa. FINANCEMENT PUBLIC ET DÉFIS BUDGÉTAIRES POUR GARANTIR L’ACCÈS GÉNÉRALISÉ À L’ENSEIGNEMENT PRIMMAIRE EN AFRIQUE SUBSAHARIENNE – La capacité budgétaire qui permettrait le financement public de l’accès généralisé à l’enseignement primaire fait défaut dans un grand nombre d’Économies subsahariennes. Les recettes nationales demeurent nettement inférieures au niveau global de la productivité Économique reflétée par le PIB. Une analyse de données sur l’année 2004 provenant de l’UNESCO et du PNUD démontre que les gouvernements de la région dépensent beaucoup moins en dollars US pour le coût unitaire de l’enseignement primaire que les pays industrialisés. L’augmentation du coût unitaire dans l’enseignement, qui permettrait aux gouvernements de généraliser l’enseignement primaire, ne ferait que soustraire des ressources à d’autres niveaux du système Éducatif dans un grand nombre de pays de la région. L’alternative consiste à généraliser l’accès en dépit des contraintes budgétaires, et ainsi à aggraver encore les problèmes dus à une infrastructure insuffisante et à des capacités limitées en ressources humaines, qui continuent à nuire à la qualité de l’enseignement en Afrique subsaharienne. STAATLICHE FINANZIERUNG UND HERAUSFORDERUNGEN FÜR DIE HAUSHALTE BEI DER GEWÄHRLEISTUNG EINES UNIVERSELLEN ZUGANGS ZUR GRUNDBILDUNG IN AFRIKA SÜDLICH DER SAHARA – In vielen Ökonomien Afrikas südlich der Sahara fehlt es an ausreichenden Haushaltsmitteln, um den universellen Zugang zur Grundbildung zu finanzieren. Die Staatseinnahmen bleiben erheblich hinter dem BIP als Maßstab für die gesamtwirtschaftliche Produktivität zurück. Von UNESCO und UNDP abgeleitete Datenanalysen aus dem Jahr 2004 zeigen, dass die Regierungen in dieser Region weit weniger US-Dollar für Grundbildung ausgeben als Industriestaaten. Würde man die Bildungsausgaben pro Einheit erhÖhen, damit eine Regierung universelle Grundbildung gewährleisten kann, so würde man damit in vielen Ländern der Region lediglich anderen Stufen des Bildungssystems Ressourcen entziehen. Die Alternative besteht darin, ungeachtet der vorhandenen Einschränkungen bei der Zuweisung von Haushaltsmitteln den Zugang für alle zu ermÖglichen und damit die Probleme der mangelhaften Infrastruktur und der begrenzten Personalkapazitäten, durch die die Bildungsqualität in Afrika südlich der Sahara noch immer beeinträchtigt wird, weiter zu verschlimmern. EL FINANCIAMIENTO PÚBLICO Y LOS RETOS PRESUPUESTARIOS PARA PROVEER ACCESO UNIVERSAL A LA EDUCACIÓN PRIMARIA EN EL ÁFRICA SUBSAHARIANA – La capacidad presupuestaria que pueda permitir el financiamiento público de un acceso universal a la enseñanza primaria es insuficiente en muchas economías subsaharianas. Los ingresos nacionales se sitúan muy por debajo de los indicador generales de productividad económica en PIB. El análisis de los datos obtenidos de la UNESCO y del PNUD en cuanto a 2004 indican que, en dólares estadounidenses de costo por alumno, los gobiernos de la región gastan mucho menos en educación primaria que los países desarrollados. Pero si se aumentaran los costos por alumno, para permitir que un gobierno garantice la educación primaria universal, estos solamente absorberían recursos de otros segmentos del sistema educativo en muchos países de la región. La alternativa sería universalizar el acceso, pese a las limitaciones de asignación presupuestaria y la consiguiente agudización de los problemas de falta de infraestructura y de recursos humanos que siguen perjudicando la calidad de la educación en el África Subsahariana.