On September 20, 2005, The George Washington University Africa Center for Health and Security teamed up with the Constituency for Africa (CFA) to present an African Health Policy Roundtable. Part of the Ronald H. Brown African Affairs Series, the goal of this Roundtable was to brief participants on the content of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that was signed by GW and CFA in August and to discuss strategies for responding to the African health challenge and to promote a comprehensive solution.
"This partnership is a melting pot of advocacy and science to get things done," said Dr. Chinua Akukwe, chair of the Africa Center's Technical Advisory Committee, CFA board member and moderator of the session.
Audience members at the well-attended session included GW students and faculty, along with representatives from embassies, government agencies, non-profit organizations and the private sector. Panelists were experts in the field; Dr. Miriam K. Were, chair, African Medical and Research Foundation, Nairobi, Kenya, and Dr. Tshepo Maaka, managing director, Medical Tourism Company, Johannesburg, South Africa, represented Africa.
The Roundtable featured two panel discussions. After a discussion of the MOU, topics turned to the link between health and economic and physical stability, the challenges of working with a continent where only 15 of more than 50 national governments are democratic and where only two countries-South Africa and Zimbabwe-finance their own healthcare systems.
Sustainability was a key issue that was emphasized throughout the discussion. Panelist and Former Assistant U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Roscoe Moore stressed the need for sustainability, allowing those on the ground to continue programs that are put in place. "It is the difference between giving food away and teaching people how to grow their own food."
The audience actively participated in the question, comment and discussion section, with most of their questions and comments centering on the GW Africa Center, the partnership, comprehensive healthcare and security. Some of the key issues to emerge were as follows: · The Africa Center is working with deliberate speed to identify sustainable and meaningful programs and to identify its niche. It is also working to determine how its resources can be best used to maximize "value added." · In terms of the partnership, the importance of addressing issues of interest to Africans, involving Africans and African Diasporas in discussions and engaging Africans in the full range of issues, from health to trade, was emphasized.
The need to promote sustainable programs was again noted. Assistance that is practical and based on a concrete plan and bottom up, solution-oriented implementation, is critical to success. · While AIDS is certainly a healthcare priority in Africa, it is not the only one. When considering comprehensive healthcare, other issues, such as nutrition and clean drinking water, need to be considered as well. It is also essential that Africa policy makers and the community are engaged in the policy document developed by CFA. · The importance of security was underscored. Security forms a framework for how structures of health can survive.
A series of other topics was discussed. Among them were: brain drain; the role of the military in Africa, such as peacekeeping operations and the military academy at Stellenbosch University; military health, as many of the of-age men who would join the military are infected with HIV/AIDS; capacity building/training; telemedicine; supply chain/logistics; the role and effectiveness of women; the importance of engaging partners, including policy makers in Africa and the West and civil society in Africa and the West; and infrastructure, among others.
The significant interest and participation in this Roundtable reinforced the importance of these issues and many people and organizations that are committed to developing and implementing policies and public health programs to improve the health and stability in Africa.
CFA is a non-governmental organization based in the United States that focuses on advocacy and educational initiatives directed at U.S.-Africa foreign policy. CFA's mission is to advocate, educate, inspire, act upon and inform its constituency about issues, concerns and challenges impacting the quality of life for the nations of sub-Saharan Africa. CFA has published more than 60 well-researched policy articles on HIV/AIDS. Over the past five years, CFA has worked tirelessly to educate tens of thousands of Americans and Africans on the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa.
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The GW Africa Center for Health and Security is devoted to improving the health and security of Africa by exploring forward-looking ideas for improving human health and welfare. Leaders from multiple disciplines and sectors discuss such issues as health, security, education, environment and infrastructure. These issues are evaluated within the multidimensional context that includes environmental realities and rapidly changing situations of Africans.
The George Washington University Medical Center is an internationally recognized interdisciplinary academic health center that has consistently provided high quality medical care in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area for 176 years. The Medical Center comprises the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, the 11th oldest medical school in the country; the School of Public Health and Health Services, the only such school in the nation's capital; GW Hospital, jointly owned and operated by a partnership between The George Washington University and Universal Health Services, Inc.; and the GW Medical Faculty Associates, an independent faculty practice plan. For more information on GWUMC, visit www.gwumc.edu.
