Recent public health emergency trends in Africa
Content Hub:
CH1304412
Ayesha Kadir, Senior Humanitarian Health Advisor,
Save the Children
Recent public health emergency trends in Africa
Public Health
Emergencies overview
(28 Sept 2023)
Source:
WHO Health Emergencies
programme
Impacts of public health
emergencies on children
Armed
conflict
Climate
change
Displacement
Many urban slum
dwellers highly
vulnerable to
climate hazards
May be
multiple
displacements
or moves
Many migrate to
urban areas seeking
jobs and services
Climate crisis
impacts getting
worse
Climate change
More children and
families migrate in
order to cope or just
survive
Children are from
‘other’ communities
making inclusion and
access to services
difficult
International
armed conflict
Community
violence
Domestic
violence
C
o
l
l
e
c
t
i
v
e
v
i
o
l
e
n
c
e
Subnational
armed conflict
I
n
t
e
r
p
e
r
s
o
n
a
l
v
i
o
l
e
n
c
e
Social arrangements
structural violence
economic violence
Globally:
A child survival
crisis
•
>5 million children dying annually before fifth
birthday from preventable and treatable causes
•
80% of these children were in
Africa
and Asia
•
12.7 million children across Africa were under-
vaccinated in 2021, including 8.7 million “zero
dose” children (
UNICEF SOWC 2023
)
•
Lack of routine catch up immunization schedules
means many of these children are not able to
access immunization outside of a campaign
•
12.2 million acutely malnourished children in Africa
•
Stunting prevalence 30.7%; global average 22%
•
Unknown prevalence of these stressors on child
development trajectories
and life outcomes
-
Crises have pervasive impacts on child public health
– don’t wait for a public health emergency to be
declared
-
Locations - Humanitarian Data Exchange
(humdata.org)
Greater Horn of Africa 2023
One of the worst droughts in recent decades
•
compounded by
years of conflict and instability
,
•
impact of the
COVID-19
pandemic
•
rising food prices in part due to the war in Ukraine
Displacement
–
search for food, water, pasture for
animals
•
Deteriorating hygiene and sanitation conditions
•
Low vaccination coverage
•
High rates of acute malnutrition and micronutrient
deficiency
High risk of disease outbreaks
•
Current focus on measles, cholera, malaria,
pneumonia and strengthening communicable
disease surveillance and outbreak response
Horn of Africa Drought Data Explorer (humdata.org)
April 15
th
conflict
erupted
As of August
5.4m
people
displaced
, including 2.2m children
Roughly
2.5 million peop
le have fled to neighbouring countries:
Chad, Egypt, South Sudan, CAR, Ethiopia and Libya
. Includes
refugees and returnees
Health workers
and their families affected, many
displaced
56
Attacks on health care
since April
Shifting conflict lines driving further displacement –
dynamic
population movements
Humanitarian access
severely impacted – Darfur health facilities
not functional
Health services delivered through health facilities and mobile
clinics
Needs assessments have identified priority areas for
strengthening
maternal newborn health
and
sexual
reproductive health
and
immunization coverage
Snapshot of Sudan
Reducing inequities in child health
•
Marked disparities in health and social outcomes between children
on crisis-affected areas and children in stable, peaceful areas
•
Between countries and between settings within the same
country
•
Protracted crises are increasingly common
•
Solutions must focus on maintaining routine preventive and
treatment services in crisis contexts
•
Gaps in immunization coverage will require
routine catch-up
schedules to meaningfully improve immunization coverage
THANK YOU
• We have 20 minutes to talk about the trends in public health emergencies across the continent
• I will break this down into trends related to drivers of public health emergencies
• Review what this means for children, and how it impacts health service delivery
Photo: Southern areas of Somalia were hit by floods in May 2023, which affected almost half a million people. Nearly 219,00 people, including 118,000 children, were displaced by the floods. Also, flood water damaged basic infrastructure, home, agricultural land and basic services facilities.
The recent public health emergency trends in Africa, as highlighted by Ayesha Kadir from Save the Children, reveal concerning issues such as climate change exacerbating crises, collective violence affecting communities, and millions of children dying annually from preventable causes. The Greater Horn of Africa is currently facing one of its worst droughts in decades, compounded by conflict, COVID-19, and rising food prices, leading to displacement, malnutrition, and disease outbreaks.
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Presentation Transcript
Recent public health emergency trends in Africa Ayesha Kadir, Senior Humanitarian Health Advisor, Save the Children Content Hub: CH1304412
Public Health Emergencies overview (28 Sept 2023) Source: WHO Health Emergencies programme
Impacts of public health emergencies on children Armed conflict Displacement Climate change
Climate change Climate crisis impacts getting worse May be multiple displacements or moves Many urban slum dwellers highly vulnerable to climate hazards More children and families migrate in order to cope or just survive Many migrate to urban areas seeking jobs and services Children are from other communities making inclusion and access to services difficult
Collective violence Social arrangements structural violence economic violence International armed conflict Subnational armed conflict Domestic violence Community violence Interpersonal violence
>5 million children dying annually before fifth birthday from preventable and treatable causes 80% of these children were in Africa and Asia 12.7 million children across Africa were under- vaccinated in 2021, including 8.7 million zero dose children (UNICEF SOWC 2023) Globally: A child survival crisis Lack of routine catch up immunization schedules means many of these children are not able to access immunization outside of a campaign 12.2 million acutely malnourished children in Africa Stunting prevalence 30.7%; global average 22% Unknown prevalence of these stressors on child development trajectories and life outcomes Crises have pervasive impacts on child public health don t wait for a public health emergency to be declared Locations - Humanitarian Data Exchange (humdata.org) - - 6
Greater Horn of Africa 2023 One of the worst droughts in recent decades compounded by years of conflict and instability, impact of the COVID-19 pandemic rising food prices in part due to the war in Ukraine Displacement search for food, water, pasture for animals Deteriorating hygiene and sanitation conditions Low vaccination coverage High rates of acute malnutrition and micronutrient deficiency High risk of disease outbreaks Current focus on measles, cholera, malaria, pneumonia and strengthening communicable disease surveillance and outbreak response Horn of Africa Drought Data Explorer (humdata.org)
Snapshot of Sudan April 15thconflict erupted As of August 5.4m people displaced, including 2.2m children Roughly 2.5 million people have fled to neighbouring countries: Chad, Egypt, South Sudan, CAR, Ethiopia and Libya. Includes refugees and returnees Health workersand their families affected, many displaced 56 Attacks on health care since April Shifting conflict lines driving further displacement dynamic population movements Humanitarian access severely impacted Darfur health facilities not functional Health services delivered through health facilities and mobile clinics Needs assessments have identified priority areas for strengthening maternal newborn health and sexual reproductive health and immunization coverage
Reducing inequities in child health Marked disparities in health and social outcomes between children on crisis-affected areas and children in stable, peaceful areas Between countries and between settings within the same country Protracted crises are increasingly common Solutions must focus on maintaining routine preventive and treatment services in crisis contexts Gaps in immunization coverage will require routine catch-up schedules to meaningfully improve immunization coverage
