The African Health Research Forum (AfHRF), an organization which proposes to put African health research higher up on the continent's agenda, was launched at the November 2002 annual meeting of the Global Forum for Health Research held in Arusha, Tanzania, the first time this Forum was held in Africa. AfHRF's overall objective is to promote health research for development in Africa and strengthen the African voice in setting and implementing the global research agenda, according to their website. The AfHRF is in the early stages of encouraging the convergence of national, regional and global efforts in health research toward the goal of creating "a research agenda developed and owned by Africa" and to "strengthen the African voice in setting and implementing the global research agenda".
Jobs and Announcements
SOMA-Net with support from Sida/SAREC has an ongoing project focusing on the social cultural aspects of HIV/Aids and the youth. This is part of a long term research based in Kenya and Uganda.
The Reproductive Health Response in Conflict (RHRC) Consortium is pleased to announce the publication of two new resources, HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control: A Short Course for Humanitarian Workers Facilitator’s Manual and Guidelines for the Care of Sexually Transmitted Infections in Conflict-affected Settings. Developed by the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children on behalf of the RHRC Consortium, these resources aim to assist field-based clinical care staff and humanitarian workers in the prevention, care, and control of HIV/AIDS and STIs in conflict and post-conflict settings.
The AIDS Law Project, a grant funded unit at the Centre for Applied Legal Studies, has contract posts for up to two years for a researcher (based in Johannesburg) and a researcher/associate researcher (based in Cape Town) in its Law & Treatment Access Unit (LTAU) from 1 April 2005 or as soon as possible thereafter. These are challenging positions and the successful applicants must be able to work quickly, under pressure and as part of a team.
Why is it that almost a decade after ratifying and acceding the Beijing and Dakar Platforms for Action, after the Convention of Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, engendering processes of the Millennium Development Goals, Maputo Declaration on Gender Mainstreaming , SADC Declaration on Gender and Development and various other treaties and conventions, southern African countries continue to battle with: gender power imbalances, gender based violence, gender based stigma and discrimination, feminization of poverty and ultimately feminization of the HIV/AIDS epidemic? SAfAIDS is hosting a southern African Regional Gender Mainstreaming Symposium in Swaziland from 5 - 7 April 2005. The link below also includes a call for participants.
The AMREF training programme is available for the year 2005. On offer are a series of short courses and the one-year Diploma in Community Health. The short courses are designed for middle and senior management personnel working in public and private sectors including NGOs, CBOs, religious organizations, donor agencies and government ministries.
Five million deaths from violence and injuries are estimated to account for 9% of global mortality, with violence leading the causes of death among people aged 15 to 44 years. Violence affects many more survivors of all ages, who often live with disabling physical conditions and mental health symptoms. Despite the magnitude of this burden, as well as the known consequences of exposure to violence among survivors, research on violence prevention remains underfunded, understudied, and a neglected public health concern.
The Regional Training Programme for Reproductive Health with special emphasis on Family Planning is supported by the Government of Mauritius, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other international agencies. Its objectives are to contribute to the health and socio-economic development in Africa and the region by improving the Reproductive Health (RH) status of the population through the provision of Training of Trainers programmes for Reproductive Health.
The Public Health in Complex Emergencies (PHCE) training program is available. The dates for all of the courses in 2005 are available through the link below.
The 2005 AIDS IMPACT conference held in Cape Town, South Africa will be a partnership between AIDS Impact and the South African HSRC with Dr Olive Shisana (HSRC)and Bridgette Prince ( Nelson Mandela Foundation) and their South African team. The conference has been in existence as an international gathering since the early 1990s.