Universal Health Coverage Day

In commemoration of the Universal health coverage day, we at PHNAfrica.com will be focusing on the subject of universal health coverage and how far Africa has come as a continent in the attainment of this goal while reaffirming our commitment as a body to the achievement of quality and affordable health care for everyone everywhere in the sub Saharan Subcontinent.

Needless to say, there has not been a time in history as this where man has come so close to the achievement of this goal as now. Unprecedented technological advancement, technological and medical know how, coupled with sufficient financial, material and human resources have made it clear that this goal is achievable in these times with adequate political and socio economic commitment to the cause.

In the sub Saharan subcontinent, there seems to have been a unanimous commitment to this cause over the years, however these nations are still very far from the attainment of the provisions of the UNs 1948 declaration of health and access to health care as a fundamental human right.
Access to health care of acceptable quality is still more of a commodity and not a fundamental human right across the subcontinent.

Why is this so? One would ask?

Lack of political will and decades of pathological selfishness of governments and elected officials have led to a scenario where by leading health officials and decision makers continue to pay a mere lip service to this declaration through policies and programs that are not followed through but are a times used just as a means to gain international recognition and further enrich themselves while sabotaging nearly every effort made by other well meaning organizations and members of the civil society to alleviate the suffering of the masses from the stand point of health and access to health care.

In my opinion, it is time for us a people to begin to ask the right questions and demand answers from our leaders as to how the resources meant for everyone are being spent on just a select few.
Medical tourism to other continents of the world by elected leaders and politicians should be investigated and it should be made clear to all and sundry how public funds are being disseminated.

It is time for us to begin to address the selfishness of our leaders who refuse to develop our educational sector while sending their own kids out of the continent to schools abroad and those that also refuse to develop our health sector and prefer to jump on the next available airplane at the faintest sign of a headache.

It is time to demand accountability in leadership and advocate for a result oriented leadership. 
In this new era of the sustainable development goals, it is time to hold our governments and leaders accountable for the stipulated targets of the health related SDG; goal 3.

It is time to simply say NO to corruption and the negative pull of socio economic forces that make a fool of initiatives, programs and policies designed for the well being of the populace.

The right to health and quality health care is everyone's business. 

Stand up for your right today!
#healthforall

Preventing violence against women ......

Prevention is the theme of this year's UN's international day for the elimination of violence against women. According to the UN Women organization one in every three women have experienced violence in one form or the other, could be physical abuse or sexual abuse.

Talking about domestic violence, a poll recently taken in Nigeria has shown that poverty is the main cause of domestic violence against married women. One in every ten married women in Nigeria may have been a victim of this form of violence. Due to the high prevalence of violence against women in Nigeria, the former president (Dr) Goodluck Johnathan signed the bill prohibiting this kind of violence. The violence against persons bill prohibits any form of violence against people in both public and private lives. In African societies rape among other sexual harassment is illegal and also a punishable offense by law, however most victims of this form of violence are often reluctant to report to the proper authorities, this is as a result of the pressure of the society, the rejection that often follows and the social stigma. 

The government should strengthen the Police department and all relevant law enforcement agencies, to do a better job at handling cases of violence against women across board.

In Africa some traditions contribute heavily to the violence faced by women, it is no news that it is embedded in the African culture that wife beating is permissible to some extent as long as it doesn't maim or inflict injury. The so called elders in the past have dismissed cases of physical assault on women in marriage. Even today how far have we gone with Gender equality in African countries?

On this year's day of Elimination of violence against women, prevention of violence against women is the theme, the UN women organization is calling on individuals and the society at large to prevent violence against women in all ramifications. It is said that unlike disease pathogens and parasites, perpetrators of violence can choose to abstain from it. Gender equality should be emphasized in marriage, women should be given the right to education in all parts of the world.

The society globally should help combat this global pandemic, efforts in the form of community mobilization to change social norms, comprehensive school interventions, gender equality, economic empowerment to mention a few are ways to help prevent violence against women and ensure a 50-50 global relationship. 

Written By: Jimoh Waliu

Ban ki-moon on financing gender equality : The Addis Ababa conference [July 2015]

In the words of Ban Ki-moon "It is clear that we have not invested sufficiently in gender equality."
"We know that persisting gaps in gender equality and women's empowerment in the world have been a barrier to the full achievement of each of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).”

He further touched on the fact that  not up to 10 per cent of official development assistance (ODA) is focused on women, and a good number of gender equality policies and initiatives fail to be funded by national governments and local funds.


He noted the need for the world to address and change this so as to achieve sustained, inclusive and equitable economic growth and development.
He further more said that gender-responsive budgeting and planning processes, can help ensure that public revenue is raised, prioritized and spent in ways that benefit women and girls.

Lowering spendings on security and the Military and the redirection of such funds into the financing of social programs as exemplified in Cambodia, Costa Rica and Sri Lanka may help further the cause.

Taxes from the private sector and the engagement of women in gainful employment by the business arm of the same sector can also help.

One of the key objectives of the conference was to establish the need for investing in policy making and legislation to ensure women's equal rights and their participation and leadership in the economy.

This is to ensure that the right financial allocation strategies are implemented to allow for women, men, girls and boys benefit equally from the new global sustainable development framework. This is their right and it must be our legacy.”

World bank president Jim Yong Kim also added that while aid is critical, it is now also time to catalyze and leverage new streams of financing from public, private, domestic and international sources. 

“Collecting taxes fairly, efficiently and transparently is critically important in ways that don't penalize women when they bring home a second income, for example, or spend money on food and other goods that sustain their families."

“When women earn more, public finances will improve and commercial profits increase because of increased demand and productivity,” he continued. “When we promote true equality, including equal pay for equal work, we all stand to benefit because better educated mothers produce healthier children and women who earn more invest in the next generation.

“Creating a level playing field is always good for business, and it's especially good for women,” he stated, adding that this kind of inclusive growth is vital to ending extreme poverty by year 2030.

Overall there was a general consensus to “ensure gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment,” hence reaffirming that this goal and the full realization of human rights are essential to achieving sustained, inclusive and equitable economic growth and sustainable development.

To transform the commitments agreed upon to action points the UN Women in collaboration with some member states have come up with an agenda : The Addis Ababa Action Plan on
Transformative Financing for Gender Equality and women's empowerment.


As the MDGs expire this year, it is a good time to reflect on the shortcomings that negatively impacted their full realization. 

One key lesson is that, investing more in women to promote true gender equality and women's empowerment will go a long way in the attainment of sustainable development.

Female Genital Mutilation and the cutting Season; A focus on Egypt

Female Genital Mutilation is an integral part of the Egyptian culture in relation to the female child and it forms part of her validation and preparedness for Marriage.
In the past people celebrated a party to mark the exercise.

According to the WHO fact sheet on Female genital mutilation:

• Female genital mutilation (FGM) includes procedures that intentionally alter or cause injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.
• The procedure has no health benefits for girls and women.
• Procedures can cause severe bleeding and problems urinating, and later cysts, infections, infertility as well as complications in childbirth and increased risk of newborn deaths.
• More than 125 million girls and women alive today have been cut in the 29 countries in Africa and the Middle East where FGM is concentrated.
• FGM is mostly carried out on young girls sometime between infancy and age 15.
• FGM is a violation of the human rights of girls and women.

One out of four cases of FGM globally occurs in Egypt.
That is, a quarter of the 125 million cases all over the world occurred in Egypt.
Currently 92% of the married women between the ages of 15 and 49 in Egypt have undergone FGM, and this is an improvement of some sort from the 97% of year 2000.

The beginning of the summer holidays mark the beginning of the cutting season. Girls between ages 9 and 12 are usually cut during this season to ensure they can stay home to heal during the holidays.
It's a scary exercise and many girls live in constant fear of when it will be their turn.
In the past the exercise was done crudely, and dust may be used to stop bleeding. In recent times, the exercise has been carried out by doctors, with the use of anaesthetic agents that help the girls sleep through the procedure.

The reason for this exercise is to prevent girls from becoming sexually promiscuous.

In Egypt the most common type done is the Partial or full removal of the clitoris, known as type 1.

In 2008, the practise was banned in Egypt, however very few indictments have been made since then. There however, has been a 13% decline in the number of FGMs between ages 15 and 17 between years 2008 and 2014.

Many doctors are still willing to carry out the procedures for families as it is a good source of income for them.

The anti FGM campaign in Egypt has become more fierce, and a doctor was prosecuted in January 2015 for carrying out the procedure.

In mid June, a plan to further reduce FGM by 10 to 15% in Egypt was made public. If it works, it will be the first time in Egypt that the number of uncut girls will be more than the number of cut girls.

This practice is not restricted to Egypt alone as it is widespread in so many communities in Africa and a lot of the cases go unreported.

Kenya, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Mali and Nigeria are a few examples of places where the practice still takes place. It was recently outlawed in Nigeria in May 2015 and processes are being put in place in Sierra Leone to outlaw FGM as soon as possible, in a bid to stop Ebola.

Isn’t it amazing that girls in Britain too are still subject to this practice as many of them are taken back to their home countries under the guise of "summer holiday" to have them cut.
The practice was banned in the UK as far back as 1985 and taking a girl abroad to have her cut was banned in 2003.
Despite all of these, there is yet to be a single prosecution in 30 years. 

About 24,000 girls in Britain are said to be at risk, with more than 170,000 women living with the consequences.
Recently, 'Petals' an app was launched by  a team at the Coventry University to help girls at risk reach help quickly and quietly. 

FGM is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women. 
It is a reminder of the deep-rooted inequality between the sexes, and can be said to be an extreme form of discrimination against women.

This cruel practice violates a person's rights to health, security and physical integrity, the right to be free from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and the right to life when the procedure results in death.

It is a pity that minors; (children) are mostly at the receiving end of this cruel practice.

Furthermore, according to the Who fact sheet on FGM; Some long term consequences of the procedure are :

• recurrent bladder and urinary tract infections;
• cysts
• infertility
• an increased risk of childbirth complications and newborn deaths;
• the need for later surgeries. This occurs in cases where the type 3 FGM procedure is carried out (sealing or narrowing of the vaginal opening), which will need to be cut open later to allow for sexual intercourse and childbirth. A times, the woman is put through repeated opening and closing procedures, usually after child birth which further increases the immediate and long-term risks.          FGM is a cruel practise with grave, lifelong and life threatening consequences and a violation of the fundamental human rights of the female child. Please speak out against FGM in your locality this season. Try not to look the other way!   
• Stop it!
• Report it!  
• Outlaw it in your country!

Implications of the Newly proposed Nigerian Sexual offenders' Law

Controversy has arisen over the new Sexual Offenders' Bill of 2015 in Nigeria. Femi Falana (SAN), together with Professor Wole Soyinka have raised objections to the Sexual Offences Bill of 2015 which was passed at the conclusion of the 7th National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The bill has criminalized the defilement of a child below age 11 years.

Human rights lawyer Femi Falana and Professor Wole Soyinka have said that "the provision is inconsistent with Section 29(4)(A) of the Nigerian 1999 Constitution which provides that "full age" means the age of 18 years and above."

Femi Falana in a letter to Wole Soyinka further more stated that :

"The minimum age of 18 years in the original Bill was in line with the provisions of the Child's Rights Act, 2003 and the Child's Rights Convention of the United Nations which has been ratified by Nigeria." 

"The Bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Legal Matters for further legislative work.
It was that Committee that illegally removed the age of 18 years and replaced it with 11 years."

He reprimanded the senate for failing to do a thorough job by ensuring the removal of the fallacious provision and the factual age reinstated before giving their approval.

According to the bill any person(s) found guilty of rape or sexual intercourse with children under age 11 years will be faced with life imprisonment. 10 years for incest; 10 years for child pornography or a fine of N2 million; and 14 years for sexual abuse to mention a few.

Why would anyone do this? One would ask ...

For decades on end several organizations, the government and the International community have worked to end child marriage in Northern Nigeria with limited results.
It has been said that the Northern senators and leaders themselves are guilty of marrying teenagers.

To build a Nigeria where the rule of law is respected, no one should be above the law. Anyone who is found guilty should be brought to book irrespective of their position, connections or political affiliations.
The law should also not be changed from time to time to suite the ill purposes of those meant to enforce it!

We are appalled by those who still choose to trample upon the sexual rights of girls and women at this point in time in history when the dire consequences of child marriage has been made known to a large percentage of people.

Hundreds of thousands of women are plagued by Vesicovaginal fistula.
90% of these women are in Africa, and especially Northern Nigeria.
25% of the known cases of vesicovaginal fistula is amongst the child brides.

Many of them are also exposed to other obstetric complications that follow teenage pregnancy. Research has shown that girls between age 15 and 20 years are twice as likely to die from pregnancy complications during childbirth than those in their 20s. And those under the age of 15years are 5 times more predisposed. Also children born to girls under 18 years are more likely to die before their first birthday than those born to women greater than age 19 years.

Keeping up this practice based on culture or religion can be deemed as man's inhumanity to man.

We urge all Nigerians and the International Community to rise up to the occasion and speak up against child marraige.
Vesicovaginal fistula and all other associated obstetric  problems must stop.
Lets respect the rights of the Nigerian woman.