Lack of necessary capacity in African countries to convert relevant new scientific knowledge into practices that could improve the people’s welfare and the general development is to blame for the increased number of poor people in the continent.

“The weak institutional linkages that often lead to undue and ill thought out over reliance on international donor funding is partly to blame for the miseries in most African countries,” Dr. Rebecca Hanlin, Development and policy expert from the Open University, Britain says.

Dr. Hanlin observes that Africa can develop faster once the governments starts allocating reasonable funds to science and innovation development adding that annual budgetary under funding by the African governments only helps drag the continent backward.

Worried by the soaring cases of people presenting to health facilities with diseases that cause excruciating pain such cancers and HIV/AIDS, medical practitioners in sub-Saharan Africa now want palliative care given the prominence it deserves.

They are pushing for a comprehensive policy on Palliative Care to reduce the disease burden, particularly on the poor.

For the first time, the topic was discussed during last week’s Special Session at the 46th annual meeting of Ministers of Health from Eastern and Southern Africa held in Seychelles.

Of the funds given for Round 2 more than three years ago, over US$57 million (Ksh 3.6 billion) is yet to be spend in the phase 2 of the round. Of these, US$ 17 million is supposed to buy antiretroviral drugs, with the rest going to strengthening structures and reporting systems. The Global Fund has warned that this money will be returned and future funding stopped if it is not used by the end of November.

Journalists who covered and were psychologically affected by last year’s post election violence are now going to benefit from a trauma counseling programme that was launched last week.

Organized by the Kenya Association of Photographers, Illustrators and Designers (KAPIDE) and Kenya Correspondents’ Association (KCA) and funded by International Media Support (IMS), the programme will provide trauma counseling to a total of 150 journalists.

Caused by tse tse flies and rated as one of the neglected tropical ailments in the developing world, the disease is already spreading to new areas of Uganda where it was once eradicated.

A new study released last week  shows that 40 percent of health workers in  public, private, faith based and non governmental health facilities exhibit stigma and discrimination tendencies against HIV Aids positive patients.

 Conducted between 2006 and 2007 in the country’s five provinces, the study reveals how government hospitals are operating without standard policy guidelines for People Living with HIV Aids (PLHIV), despite the policy documents lying at the Ministry of Health.

Pamela Aoko Ndhiwa has lived here for the last three years. She seems oblivious to the the sewage just inches from her plastic sandals as she crosses the small bridges leading to her house.

A Kenyan scientist is dashing to the finish line in the microbicide race, with the development of a gel that offers triple benefits-ability to kill HIV, protect women from pregnancy, and act as a lubricant.

Studies in monkeys have shown the microbicide gel’s ability to immobilize the sperms, preventing conception, with those in the laboratories indicating the gel’s ability to kill HIV by making the vaginal environment too acidic for the virus to survive. 

After a long period of indecision, insurance companies are gradually warming up to the possibilities of providing medical cover to people living with AIDS.

This development amounts to a paradigm shift in the health insurance sector – long associated with conservative practices that gave HIV/AIDS a wide berth citing high risks and uncertainty.