EQUINET will be holding a Workshop on Participatory Methods for for research and training for a people centred health system in Bagamoyo, Tanzania, March 1-4, 2006. TARSC and IHRDC under the EQUINET umbrella and with support from CHESSORE have developed a toolkit of materials on participatory reflection and action (PRA) methods for research and training for a people centred health system. The materials provide information on areas for strengthening community voice and roles in health systems and introduce and provide examples of participatory approaches for training and research that supports this. EQUINEt will also be providing some small grants to support research and training using PRA methods for those who have completed the course.
Those interested in this area of training please contact us at admin@equinetafrica.org
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The workshop on Protecting health in Trade agreements held in Johannesburg in October 2005 was held within an EQUINET programme with Centre for Health Policy South Africa and SEATINI Zimbabwe that aims to build capacities in state, legislative and civil society institutions to know, understand, analyse and promote public sector equity oriented health systems within trade and investment policies and agreements. The workshop reviewed the work and research papers of the capacity building programme implemented in Tanzania and Zimbabwe to date.
Training and Research Support Centre (TARSC), the Ifakara Health Research and Development Centre (IHRDC) with The Southern African Regional Network on Equity in Health (EQUINET) and CHESSORE Zambia invites applicants to participate and share experiences in a Workshop on Participatory Methods for research and training for a people centred health system being held in Bagamoyo, Tanzania, March 1-4, 2006.
The regional review meeting brought together steering committee members; theme, process and country co-ordinators; colleagues working in key areas of work central to EQUINET’s agenda; and civil society colleagues. The meeting reviewed EQUINET current work to shape and critically debate the form and content for the annual equity analysis at regional (and country) level.
The workshop aimed to review the work and research papers of the capacity building programme implemented in Tanzania and Zimbabwe to date. The purpose of the workshop was thus to review the training, findings and programme in order to identify issues arising for policy support, future capacity building, extension to other countries in the region and to strengthen linkages with other work on trade and health.
The EQUINET regional meeting on Human Resources for Health August 19-20 2005 in Johannesburg South Africa discussed and debated Human Resources for Health (HRH) research and policy with a view to improving the equitable distribution of HRH within southern Africa. By the end of the deliberations, the delegates from government, non government, health worker, national, regional and international level at the meeting highlighted key areas of shared perspective on HRH.
A regional meeting (hosted by EQUINET/Oxfam working with SADC in February 2004) identified the need to monitor equity in access and health systems issues as critical to supporting visibility, policy dialogue and programme planning on these issues of equity and health system strengthening. EQUINET, through Training and Research Support Centre, carried out work to assess the existing monitoring taking place in relation to expanding ART coverage and contracted the Equi-TB Knowledge Programme – now REACH Trust - Malawi, to write a paper on the area of monitoring equity and health systems impacts of ART expansion at subnational and national level, with recommendations for regional level monitoring.
Health civil society groups in Zimbabwe and east and southern Africa, met on 13 October 2005 to discuss struggles for health and agreed on the resolutions available through clicking on the web link provided, to be presented at the Southern African Social Forum on 14 October 2005.
The Health Economics Unit at the University of Cape Town is offering a 5-day short course addressing the changing role of health insurance in low- and middle-income countries. The course focuses on the financial management of risk pools in diverse settings covering a broad spectrum of insurance arrangements including community-based health insurance, private voluntary insurance for the formal sector and social or national health insurance.
The Network for Equity in Health in east and southern Africa (Equinet) participated in a number of sessions at Forum 9 of the Global Health Research Forum in Mumbai, India, 12-16 September 2005. The theme of the meeting this year was Poverty, equity and health research. The Global Forum’s annual meeting provides the opportunity for presentations and exchange of views on key issues on the global health agenda. Participants from a broad range of constituencies were present: health and development ministries, multilateral and bilateral agencies, research-oriented bodies and universities, NGOs and civil society, the private sector, the media. EQUINET has a substantial programme of research work on equity in health and reported on some of this at the Forum. Papers were presented by Grace Bongololo and Lot Nyirenda on theme work on gender equity in Antiretroviral therapy access; by Di McIntyre and Lucy Gilson on equitable health care financing; Rene Loewenson, Itai Rusike and Memory Zulu on The Impact Of Health Centre Committees On Health outcomes in Zimbabwe and Lucy Gilson, Ermin Erasmus; Peter Kamuzora; TJ Ngulube; Verona Phillips and Vera Scott on applying policy analysis in tackling implementation gaps.