Latest Equinet Updates

Health Literacy training and processes in the Mining Sector
EQUINET: Regional meeting, Harare and follow up work, March 2019

From 2016, co-ordinated by Training and Research Support Centre (TARSC), EQUINET has implemented research and policy engagement on extractive industries / mining and health in east and southern Africa (ESA), working with regional partners in East Central and Southern Africa Health Community, the Southern African Trade Union Co-ordinating Council, SADC Council of NGOs, the Alternative Mining Indaba ad others. The work and knowledge shared contributed to the development of a Mining and Health Literacy Module, to provide information and support discussion on advancing public health and implementing the right to health in the mining sector in the ESA region. In March 2019, against this background, TARSC in EQUINET organised a regional meeting on health literacy in the mining sector in Harare, Zimbabwe from 28-29 March 2019 for organisations that had been actively involved in planning and leading work on health in mining to date. The meeting involved delegates from Botswana Federation of Trade Unions, Benchmarks Foundation, Swaziland Migrant Mineworkers Association, Southern African Trade Union co-ordinating conference, Botswana Labour Migrants Association, Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, National Mineworkers Union of Zimbabwe, Southern and East African Trade Information and negotiations Institute and TARSC. The meeting discussed health literacy outreach for workers, communities and ex mineworkers in the mining sector; shared information on the scope of and groups covered in current mining and health capacity building programmes and reviewed the methods for and use of the EQUINET health literacy module on Mining and health. Delegates planned collectively subsequent follow up training activities on mining and health, and discussed co-operation on upcoming regional processes on health in mining. The group agreed to continue to work together as a ‘Mining and Health’ Working group to take follow up work forward, with each contributing inputs related to their work. A health literacy training of trainers workshop on mining and health will be held in follow and those interested should please contact EQUINET using the feedback form at the website shown.

EQUINET Discussion paper 117: Pathways to urban health equity: Report of multi-method research in east and Southern Africa
Loewenson R; Masotya M: TARSC, Working with Harare and Lusaka youth, Civic Forum on Human Development and Lusaka District Health Office, EQUINET, Harare, 2018

By 2050, urban populations in Africa will increase to 62%. The World Health Organization (WHO) and UN-Habitat in their 2010 report ‘Hidden Cities’ note that this growth in the urban population constitutes one of the most important global health issues of the 21st century. In 2016-2018, Training and Research Support Centre (TARSC) in the Regional Network for Equity in Health in East and Southern Africa (EQUINET) explored the social distribution of health in urban areas and the opportunities for and practices promoting urban health and well-being. It focused on youth 15-24 years of age as an important group for both current and future well-being. The paper synthesises and reports evidence from a programme of work that unfolded iteratively over two years. The work involved desk reviews of published literature and analysis of data from international databases for east and southern African countries, and international evidence on practices supporting urban well-being in areas prioritised by urban youth. The findings were subject to cycles of participatory review and validation by young people from diverse urban settings and socio-economic groups in Harare and Lusaka. These methods were applied with an intention to draw on different disciplines, concepts and variables from different sectors and on the lived experience and perceptions of the youth directly affected by different urban conditions. Separate publications produced in the project give more detail on particular methods, and findings and are cited in this paper. A series of dissemination and dialogue activities have been carried out with youth, local authority and policy actors, supported by shorter briefs and technical reports.

EQUINET Discussion paper 118: Comparative review: Implementation of constitutional provisions on the right to healthcare in Kenya and Uganda
Centre for Health, Human Rights and Development (CEHURD): CEHURD, EQUINET: Uganda and Harare, 2019

This discussion paper is produced by the Centre for Human Rights and Development (CEHURD) as part of the theme work on health rights and law of the Regional Network for Equity in Health in East and Southern Africa (EQUINET). The paper examines the implementation of constitutional provisions on the right to healthcare in Kenya and Uganda, two countries in East Africa. It aims to identify factors and mechanisms that have facilitated implementation of constitutional provisions on the right to healthcare, including how the constitutions were developed and framed. It compares implementation in Kenya, where the right to healthcare is explicit in their 2010 Constitution, and in Uganda, where the right to healthcare is implicit in the National Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy. The paper draws on two EQUINET case studies on implementation of constitutional provisions on the right to health, one each in Kenya and Uganda, published in 2018, a 2017 regional workshop that discussed the implementation of constitutional provisions on the right to health, and additional review of published literature. It presents a thematic analysis of the findings from the two case studies in terms of the judicial, political and popular implementation mechanisms, exploring further the factors and mechanisms that have facilitated or blocked their implementation. As the two constitutions address the right to healthcare differently, this analysis of their application provides insights into the factors and mechanisms for practice that may be useful in other settings.

Regional EQUINET meeting on health literacy in the mining sector
Harare, Zimbabwe 28-29 March 2019

The Regional EQUINET meeting on health literacy in the mining sector is being held on March 28 and 29 2019 in Harare to discuss health literacy outreach for workers, communities and ex mineworkers in the mining sector. We will be sharing information on the scope of and groups covered in current mining and health capacity building programmes; the methods for and use of the EQUINET health literacy module on Mining and health and co-operation on key upcoming regional processes on health in mining. The meeting involves EQUINET (TARSC, SEATINI); Botswana Federation of Trade Unions; Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, Southern African Trade Union Co-ordinating Council, Benchmarks Foundation South Africa, Swaziland Migrant Mineworkers Association, Eswatini and BoLAMA Botswana. For those interested in further follow up health literacy training in the Mining sector being held later in 2019 please contact the EQUINET secretariat.

EQUINET Diss 117: Pathways to urban health equity: Report of multi-method research in east and southern Africa
Loewenson R; Masotya M: TARSC, Working with Harare and Lusaka youth, Civic Forum on Human Development and Lusaka District Health Office, EQUINET, Harare

By 2050, urban populations in Africa will increase to 62%. The World Health Organization (WHO) and UN-Habitat in their 2010 report ‘Hidden Cities’ note that this growth in the urban population constitutes one of the most important global health issues of the 21st century. In 2016-2018, Training and Research Support Centre (TARSC) in the Regional Network for Equity in Health in East and Southern Africa (EQUINET) explored the social distribution of health in urban areas and the opportunities for and practices promoting urban health and well-being. It focused on youth 15-24 years of age as an important group for both current and future well-being. The paper synthesises and reports evidence from a programme of work that unfolded iteratively over two years. The work involved desk reviews of published literature and analysis of data from international databases for east and southern African countries, and international evidence on practices supporting urban well-being in areas prioritised by urban youth. The findings were subject to cycles of participatory review and validation by young people from diverse urban settings and socio-economic groups in Harare and Lusaka. These methods were applied with an intention to draw on different disciplines, concepts and variables from different sectors and on the lived experience and perceptions of the youth directly affected by different urban conditions. Separate publications produced in the project give more detail on particular methods, and findings and are cited in this paper. A series of dissemination and dialogue activities have been carried out with youth, local authority and policy actors, supported by shorter briefs and technical reports.

Responding to inequalities in health in urban areas in east and southern Africa: Brief 5: What does the evidence indicate for advancing urban health and wellbeing?
Loewenson R; Masotya M: TARSC, EQUINET, Harare

Training and Research Support Centre (TARSC) as cluster lead of the “Equity Watch” work in EQUINET implemented a multi-methods approach to gather and analyse diverse forms of evidence and experience on inequalities in health and its determinants within urban areas. We explored current and possible responses to these urban conditions, from the health sector and the health promoting interventions of other sectors and of communities. We aimed to build a holistic understanding of the social distribution of health in urban areas and the distribution of opportunities for and practices promoting health and wellbeing from different perspectives and disciplines. We worked with Harare and Lusaka youth, the Civic Forum on Human Development and Lusaka District Health Office for the participatory validation This brief, the fifth in the series on urban health, reports on the combined findings and their implications for improving equity in urban health and wellbeing.

Mapping the constitutional provisions on the right to health and the mechanisms for implementation in Kenya
Kenya Legal and Ethical Issues Network on HIV and AIDS (KELIN): Case study report, KELIN, EQUINET, Kenya, 2018

This case study is produced by the Kenya Legal and Ethical Issues Network on HIV and AIDS (KELIN), working with Charles Dulo as a contributor, in the theme work on health rights and law of the Regional Network for Equity in Health in East and Southern Africa (EQUINET). This Paper’s objective is to answer the question, “What difference have constitutional rights to health made in practice and what have been the issues affecting the capacity to claim and deliver on the rights in Kenya?” It is a follow up on the results of work on the right to health that highlighted a need to do further studies in countries that do not have expressed provision on the rights to health. It is a desk review of literature that explores the historical background on the right to health before the current constitution that was promulgated in 2010. This is followed by a review of the legislative framework after 2010 and jurisprudence on the right health, and concludes by highlighting key challenges in the realization of the right to health in Kenya.

Participatory meetings in Harare on health and wellbeing of urban youth, 2016-7
Training and Research Support Centre (TARSC), Civic Forum on Human Development (CFHD): EQUINET, Harare

TARSC as cluster lead of the “Equity Watch” work in EQUINET has been exploring these questions in east and southern African (ESA) countries, gathering diverse forms of evidence from literature review, analysis of quantitative data, internet searches on practices and a participatory validation amongst different social groups of youth in Harare and Lusaka. In Harare, TARSC worked with Civic Forum on Human Development (CFHD) and youth living in low density, medium income suburbs; in formal employment; in tertiary education; unemployed youth; youth in informal employment and in informal settlements. Briefs and reports capturing some of this work are available on the EQUINET website. This report compiles in one document the several rounds of participatory review and validation carried out in Harare with young people from low density, medium income suburbs; youth in formal employment; youth in tertiary education; unemployed youth; youth in informal employment and youth in informal settlements on their perceptions of health and wellbeing, the drivers of wellbeing in their areas, the approaches and practices that are and could be implemented to improve their wellbeing and the implications for urban services, including for health systems.

The International Health Regulations and health systems strengthening in east and southern Africa: A desk review
Machemedze R: EQUINET discussion paper 116, SEATINI, TARSC, EQUINET, Harare

This review paper examines the extent to which the core, public health capacities developed for the 2005 International Health Regulations (IHR) are also being applied in a manner that supports health systems strengthening (HSS). Produced under the Regional Network for Equity in Health in East and Southern Africa (EQUINET), the paper reviews evidence on the IHR 2005 design, capacities and implementation on HSS in east and southern African countries, particularly in relation to: a. Capacities of community health and primary-level health personnel and service capacities, including health information systems to this level; b. Public health system capacities and functioning relevant to food safety; and c. Ensuring laboratory and pharmaceutical personnel capacities. The paper explores the synergies and opportunities being generated, or not, between investments in IHR implementations and these three areas of HSS in the 16 ESA countries covered by EQUINET. It identifies key weaknesses and challenges and highlights case studies of good practice within the region.

New resources added to the PAR portal
EQUINET pra4equity network

New resources have been added to the Participatory Action Research Portal. The portal has resources on Participatory Action Research (PAR) with a growing number of resources on PAR related to training courses, training guides and reports of training activities; methods, tools and ethics; PAR work and journal publications on PAR. The portal is a resource for all those working with PAR and includes resources in any language. There is a form for people to send videos, photojournalism, organisations, journal papers, training guides and other resources for the portal. The url link shown here is in English but there is also a Spanish version at http://www.equinetafrica.org/content/portal-de-recursos-para-la-investigaci%C3%B3n-acci%C3%B3n-participativa-iap

Pages