On the occasion of World Health Day on Saturday, April 7, 2018, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has called for increased and more quality investments in the continent’s health sector to achieve universal health coverage.

Member States of the United Nations agreed in 2012 to work towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by 2030 with a target that everyone, everywhere should access quality health services, where and when they need them without facing financial hardship.

The theme of World Health Day is “Universal Health Coverage: everyone, everywhere”, with the slogan “Health for All”. By owning and leading their national Universal Health Coverage agendas, countries can move towards achieving the goal of UHC.

“Providing Universal Health Coverage through strengthened health systems backed with a sound financing system are clearly fundamental to improving the quality of life for the people of Africa,” said Oley Dibba-Wadda, Director of Human Capital, Youth and Skills Development at the AfDB.

AfDB’s High 5 development priorities, says the organisation, are enablers for achieving public health security in Africa.

According to the bank, it has since the late 1970s invested $7.2 billion to finance over 220 health operations mainly through its sovereign lending window. These projects, it adds, have a strong focus on increasing access to health care services and saving the lives of people, and contributing to improving the health and well-being of women and children. The bank’s decentralisation policy is said to have brought the institution closer to clients, with social sector experts across the five African regions.

The bank says it also provides technical assistance to governments and the private sector and contributes to knowledge-sharing, and that its support for the health sector has been catalytic, including selective support to strategic investments which have contributed to improving health outcomes.

While claiming that it was instrumental in strengthening pandemic preparedness and response efforts across all West African countries, contributing to the timely containment of the Ebola epidemic, the organisation reveals that it was the first international financial institution to rally support in the fight against Ebola, providing about $300 million for emergency and post-Ebola recovery programmes in the affected countries, and neighbouring countries.

Building an effective health system is fundamental to ensuring that Africa can better respond to health emergencies, build resilient economies, and improve the life expectancy of its people, it emphasises.

According to the AfDB, Africa lags behind the rest of the world, as it carries 24% of the global disease burden while accounting for only 13% of the world’s population.

“For instance, the risk of a woman dying from a maternal cause is approximately 23 times higher than for a woman living in a developed country. It is estimated that 5.9 million children under 5 years of age died in 2015, mostly from preventable causes, and that some 217 million African people are undernourished.

“Health requires increased and sustained investments. In April 2001, the African Union countries met in Abuja, Nigeria, and pledged to set a target of allocating at least 15% of their annual budget to improve the health sector and urged donor countries to scale up support.”

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently estimates that $20-54 billion is required to address the healthcare investment gap in the continent every year until 2030 to reach the UHC targets. Yet, domestic spending on health varies largely between countries. In most African countries, public spending falls short of the Abuja target of 15% budget allocation.

At the same time, countries achieve highly varying health results at comparable levels of health expenditures, which indicate that the use of available resources needs to be improved.

The AfDB has promised that it will continue to leverage its position as the trusted development institution on the continent to advance Universal Health Coverage for everyone, everywhere.

Recent improvement in security is helping immunisation activities in Zamfara State, says World Health Organisation (WHO) Coordinator in the state, Dr Hamza Kankiya.

The WHO Coordinator made the assertion on Saturday, April 8, 2018 at the Flag-off of April 2018 National Immunisation Plus Days awareness campaign held in Kaura-Namoda.

He said, “We are congratulating the Zamfara State Government and entire people of the state, and also acknowledge the efforts of Federal Government and security agencies in addressing security challenges facing the state.

“The improvement of security in the state has allowed us to reach many children in several communities that were being left in polio immunisation for years due to insecurity.

“Inaccessibility to some settlement due to insecurity was a major challenge hindering polio immunisation in the state.

“But with the present efforts that government is making, we have started witnessing changes and accessing some communities who were left during the previous polio immunisation exercises.

“In March round polio eradication campaign, 15, 232 children were not accessed across 125 settlements in the 31 wards of eight out of the 14 local government areas of the state.

“Inaccessible areas due to insecurity, poor team performance, and non-compliant parents remained major challenges hindering polio immunisation in Zamfara State,’’ he said.

Kankiya thanked the state government for providing enabling environment for the partner agencies to support communities in the state in health care delivery and polio immunisation.

“We are also appreciating the traditional and religious leaders over their contentious efforts in ensuring quality implementation campaigns, community mobilisation and resolution of non-compliance cases.

“The positive results of political, traditional and religious institutions in improving health status of women and children in the state.”

In her remark, the representatives of UNICEF, Mrs Carina Prakke, commended all stakeholders working to eradicate polio virus in the state.

“It is commendable efforts as we have government officials, traditional and religious leaders and development partners among others working together to ensure effective polio eradication in this state.

“It is very impressive to have the record of six years without polio virus in this state; therefore we need to continue with this collaboration in order to achieve the desired goal and objectives,’’ she said.

Executive Secretary of the state Primary Health Care Development Board, Alhaji Yusuf Mafara, commended the partners supporting the state not only on immunisation but in all health care related programmes.

“I must appreciate Federal Ministry of Health and National Primary Health Care Development Agency over their immense support to the health sector of the state,’’

He also thanked Kaura-Namoda Emirate Council for its commitments in supporting primary health care delivery in the area and enlightening the public on the importance of polio immunisation.

By Ishaq Zaki

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has made a strong call for universal health coverage, saying health is a human right.

WHO also said governments should ensure that all people can get quality health services, where and when they need them, without suffering financial hardship.

WHO Director-General, Tedros Ghebreyesus, in his message on the World Health Day, which is marked annually on April 7, said no one should be denied access to healthcare because of his or her social status.

“Health is a human right. No one should get sick and die just because they are poor, or because they cannot access the health service they need.

“Universal health coverage is a political choice. It takes vision, courage and long-term thinking.

“But the payoff is a safer, fairer and healthier world for everyone,” Ghebreyesus said.

According to WHO, at least half the world’s population do not have coverage for full essential health services, with about 100 million people living on 1.90 dollars or less a day because they have to pay for health care.

Over the past seven decades, WHO has spearheaded efforts to rid the world of killer diseases and fight against deadly habits, like tobacco use.

“Good health is the most precious thing anyone can have. When people are healthy, they can learn, work, and support themselves and their families.

“When they are sick, nothing else matters. Families and communities fall behind. That’s why WHO is so committed to ensuring good health for all,” Ghebreyesus stressed.

UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, recalled that WHO was founded on the principle that “the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being.”

“Since then, average global life expectancy has expanded by 23 years,” he said, noting the eradication of smallpox and the dissipation of polio.

Guterres stressed that although millions more children lived to celebrate their fifth birthday, people around the world still lacked vital health services.

“Today, we join WHO in recommitting to ensure that everyone, everywhere, gets the health services they need. Join me in calling for Health for All,” he said.

“As part of the landmark 2030 Agenda and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), all UN Member States agreed to try to achieve universal health coverage by 2030.

“When people have to pay most health service costs themselves, often the poor cannot obtain what they need and even the rich may fall victim to financial hardship from long-term illness,” WHO said.

WHO maintained that pooling resources from compulsory funding sources, such as mandatory insurance contributions, could improve health service coverage by spreading the financial risks of illness across a population.

Many countries have successfully eliminated measles, malaria and debilitating tropical diseases, as well as mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis.

New WHO recommendations for earlier treatment, efforts to access cheaper generic medicines and innovative partnerships have produced vaccines against meningitis, Ebola and the world’s first for malaria.

By Prudence Arobani