UN Women [to 21 June 2014]
http://www.unwomen.org/

‘Ending all forms of discrimination and violence against women by 2030 is the mission of our time’ – Executive Director
Posted on June 19, 2014
Closing remarks of UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka at the Executive Board Annual Session, 19 June 2014, New York.

UN organizations call for an end to forced, coercive and involuntary sterilization
Posted on June 18, 2014
The World Health Organization (WHO), along with OHCHR, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF and UN Women, have issued a statement on “Eliminating forced, coercive and otherwise involuntary sterilization”.

“It is not mission impossible; it is a mission of our time” – UN Women Executive Director
Posted on June 17, 2014
Opening Statement of UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka at the Annual Session of the UN Women Executive Board, 17 June 2014, New York.

Gender Equality and Women’s Human Rights: Unfinished Business
Posted on June 16, 2014
In her speech at the first global event as part of UN Women’s Beijing+20 campaign, held as a side event to the Nordic Forum in Sweden, UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka states that now is the time to transform gender relations.

Placing women’s human rights, women’s empowerment and gender equality at the centre of the global agenda
Posted on June 16, 2014
In her key note speech at the Nordic Forum in Sweden, UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka says women’s collective action plays a critical role in holding decision-makers to account and advancing women’s rights.

UNFPA United Nations Population Fund [to 21 June 2014]
http://www.unfpa.org/public/

UNFPA News
19 June 2014 – Dispatch
Mobile teams resume reproductive health care in Rakhine, Myanmar
SITTWE, Myanmar – UNFPA-supported mobile medical teams have resumed providing life-saving reproductive health services in 15 camps for displaced people in Myanmar’s Rakhine State. Four teams have been deployed, including 10 UNFPA-sponsored midwives, five of whom recently received hands-on training in Yangon. The teams, which also include doctors and health assistants, will provide much-needed health services to around 90,000 people from both Rohingya and Rakhine communities.

18 June 2014 – Dispatch
Filipino police officer credits UNFPA training for helping her uncover human trafficking case
TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines – A female police officer who intercepted four people suspected of trafficking five girls from an area affected by Typhoon Haiyan attributes her alertness to the training on human trafficking she received from UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund.

17 June 2014 – Dispatch
Schools for Husbands gaining ground in rural Niger
NIAMEY, Niger – In the courtyard of a health centre in Maiki Village, in Niger’s Maradi Region, men are gathered under the shade of a makeshift shelter. Sitting on colourful carpets, they are deep in conversation about a topic that once would have been hard to discuss: their wives’ reproductive health. This is the village’s School for Husbands, part of a programme started in 2008.

UNESCO [to 21 June 2014]
http://en.unesco.org/

22 June 2014
:: World Heritage List reaches 1000 sites with inscription of Okavango Delta in Botswana
:: Myanmar’s first site inscribed on World Heritage List
:: Singapore names an orchid in honor of UNESCO

20 June 2014
:: Palestine: Land of Olives and Vines – Cultural Landscape of Southern Jerusalem, Battir, inscribed on World Heritage List and on List of World Heritage in Danger
:: World Heritage is a beacon for sustainable development
:: Ethics and bioethics across the globe discussed in Mexico
:: World War I Underwater heritage UNESCO scientific conference and commemoration, Bruges (Belgium)
:: Raising support for peacebuilding in South Sudan
:: UNESCO calls for proposals to produce gender programming guidelines for community radio

19 June 2014
:: New Policy brief on Sustainable Management of Marginal Drylands
:: UNESCO teams up with key media actors to call for a media goal in the post-2015 agenda
:: Communities of South Sudan build their National Museum
:: Biosphere reserves located in the Volga River Basin publish new posters
:: Director-General condemns killing of Reporters Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin in Ukraine

18 June 2014
:: Hutchison medal awarded for Ocean fertilization for geoengineering publication
:: UNESCO launches landmark study to assist media development in Palestine
:: Poaching puts Tanzania’s Selous Game Reserve on List of World Heritage in Danger
:: Second WSIS+10 Review: Multistakeholder negotiations again successful — Freedom of Expression at the heart of the negotiations
:: Decision on status of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef deferred until 2015
:: Normative, strategic and operational contexts of Openness and Inclusiveness stressed to achieve universal access to information and knowledge

17 June 2014
:: UNESCO Memory of the World Nominations
:: Huangshan Declaration on UNESCO Sites, Sustainable Development and the Role of Space Technologies
:: City of Potosi (Plurinational State of Bolivia) added to List of World Heritage in Danger
:: Enhancing language ability: outcomes of the International Conference on language
:: UNESCO and Seabourn partnership for World Heritage protection and sustainable tourism
:: Tanzania’s Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Ruins of Songo Mnara removed from UNESCO List of World Heritage in Danger
:: Global Partnership for Education Conference: UNESCO pledges to support better data and planning
:: The Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova calls on Iraqis to stand united around their cultural heritage

15 June 2014
:: World Heritage Committee meeting opens in Doha

FAO Food & Agriculture Organization [to 21 June 2014]
http://www.fao.org/home/en/

World Water Council and FAO step up their partnership
The World Water Council (WWC) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) have agreed to intensify their collaboration in a bid to strengthen global water and food security.
18-06-2014

Chile, China and Morocco join others in moving closer to eradicating hunger
During a ceremony at FAO headquarters, the Organization’s Director-General, José Graziano da Silva, awarded diplomas to China and Morocco for obtaining the Millennium Development Goal 1 (MDG-1). Chile, which had already reached its MDG-1 target, received the diploma for achieving the 1996 World Food Summit (WFS) target.
16-06-2014

UNCTAD [to 21 June 2014]
http://unctad.org/en/Pages/Home.aspx

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon hails UNCTAD’s vital role in delivering the post-2015 sustainable development agenda
Fiftieth anniversary meeting reaffirms UNCTAD’s commitment to multilateral approach to trade and development
UNCTAD/PRESS/PR/2014/027
Geneva, Switzerland, (17 June 2014)
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hailed UNCTAD’s contribution to the UN’s development work as “vital” in an address to a special session of UNCTAD’s Trade and Development Board convened to mark the organization’s fiftieth anniversary.
“With the creation of UNCTAD, all members of the United Nations Organization explicitly adopted a development perspective,” Mr. Ban, speaking in the Assembly Hall of the Palais des Nations at the UN office in Geneva, said. “Over the past half century, the entire United Nations family has strengthened its commitment to fair and inclusive socioeconomic development.”
“Our task today is in some senses more difficult than it was 50 years ago,” Mr. Ban said. “If we are to succeed in our quest for sustainable development, we will have to strengthen multilateral cooperation and global partnerships. In preparation for post-2015 [when new development targets will be in place], we in the United Nations system are working on making ourselves ‘fit for purpose’. As an anchor in the UN’s development pillar, UNCTAD has a vital role to play in helping to deliver the post-2015 agenda.”…

CBD (Convention of Biological Diversity) [to 21 June 2014]
http://www.cbd.int/

Governments recommend actions for enhancing implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020
2014-06-20
Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) wrapped up a weeklong meeting on implementation with recommendations on, among others, resource mobilization, technical and scientific cooperation, poverty eradication and sustainable development, enhancements to the structures and processes under the CBD and engagement with business, local governments and other stakeholders.

USAID [to 21 June 2014]
http://www.usaid.gov/

Broad Coalition of Celebrities, Athletes, Non-Profits Join with USAID to ‘Let Girls Learn’
June 20, 2014
VIDEO
In a major show of support for girls’ education and empowerment around the world, nearly 30 artists and athletes, as well as a host of global non-profits and businesses have joined with the U.S. government to launch Let Girls Learn. The new effort aims to elevate a conversation about the need to support all girls in their pursuit of a quality education.

USAID, Keurig Green Mountain, Cooperative Coffees, Starbucks and Root Capital Launch $23 Million Resilience Fund to Help Farms Fighting Coffee Rust Crisis
June 19, 2014
Affected Latin American and Caribbean farmers to receive financial support and training to stabilize coffee industry
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), in partnership with Keurig Green Mountain, Inc., Cooperative Coffees, Starbucks, and Root Capital, today launched the Coffee Farmer Resilience Fund to leverage $23 million in financial assistance for more than 40,000 coffee farmers combating the devastating coffee rust outbreak in Latin America and the Caribbean. Since 2012, coffee rust has affected more than two million people in Latin America, causing an estimated $1 billion in economic damages which could lead to 500,000 job losses.

USAID Invests $10 Million to Help Fight Corruption in Ukraine
June 18, 2014
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Rajiv Shah today announced $10 million in additional U.S. support for Ukraine, largely for corruption fighting measures. The support furthers the U.S. Government’s commitment to fighting corruption, especially with stakeholders and in areas not previously addressed, by helping Ukrainians develop institutions and mechanisms to better monitor how their government is working for them.

USAID Airlifts Urgent Relief Supplies to Central African Republic
June 17, 2014
STATEMENT BY ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR NANCY LINDBORG
Today in Bangui, an airlift of vital relief supplies—blankets, kitchen sets, hygiene kits, and water buckets—arrived to help Central Africans in urgent need in Bangui and Ouham-Pendé, an area of northwestern Central African Republic virtually unreached by humanitarian aid since the escalation of violence in December.

USAID Launches New Coastal Programs to Conserve Oceans and Food Sources in Developing Countries
June 17, 2014
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) today announced new coastal programs, valued at more than $170 million, to benefit coastal communities, which are among some of the most vulnerable, poor, and marginalized groups. The announcement took place at the “Our Ocean” Conference hosted by Secretary of State John Kerry. These programs will support marine conservation, sustainable fisheries, coastal adaptation and efforts to combat illegal fishing and wildlife trafficking in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Pacific.

DFID [to 21 June 2014]
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-international-development

Additional UK support for Iraqis in need
18 June 2014 DFID Press release
UK humanitarian support for Iraq now stands at £5 million.
The UK will provide an additional £2 million of emergency humanitarian relief to help tens of thousands of ordinary Iraqis in serious need, Prime Minister David Cameron announced today (18 June 2014).

This second package of support will provide emergency medicines, including polio and measles vaccinations, food and basic shelter to women, men and children affected by the crisis. It will also enable aid agencies on the ground to trace and reunite families who have been separated while fleeing from the violence.

An initial £3 million of support was announced last Saturday (14 June 2014) by International Development Secretary Justine Greening. Today’s announcement brings to £5 million the total direct humanitarian support that is being provided by the UK for this crisis…

ECHO [to 21 June 2014]
http://ec.europa.eu/echo/index_en.htm

IRAQ: The EU steps up assistance to people fleeing from violence
19/06/2014 – The European Union will increase its humanitarian assistance to Iraq by €5 million in order to respond to the urgent needs of those affected by the recent violence in central and northern Iraq.

OECD [to 21 June 2014]
http://www.oecd.org/

2014 Global Forum on Responsible Business Conduct, Paris, 26-27 June 2014
19 June 2014
Responsible business conduct is crucial for open and stable international investment climates. OECD Secretary-General Ángel Gurría will open the 2014 OECD Global Forum on Responsible Business Conduct on 26-27 June 2014, together with Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Co-operation Lilianne Ploumen and French Minister for Finance and Public Accounts Michel Sapin.

Korea: Implement reforms to develop a creative economy, OECD says
19 June 2014
Korea needs to move away from its current economic model and implement a range of reforms to develop a creative economy that can sustain long-term growth, according to the latest OECD Economic Survey of Korea. The strategy should be accompanied by new measures to reduce income inequality and poverty, particularly among the elderly, the OECD said.

The Sphere Project [to 21 June 2014]
http://www.sphereproject.org/news/

The Core Humanitarian Standard: Second Period of Consultation Launched
17 June 2014 | Sphere Project
The Humanitarian Accountability Partnership (HAP), People In Aid and the Sphere Project, with the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) Technical Steering Group, are pleased to present the revised version of the CHS for testing and the second period of consultation.
The CHS is currently available in English and can be downloaded from the CHS website. French, Spanish and Arabic versions will be available online on 27 June 2014 along with further detail on how to test the CHS.

American Journal of Disaster Medicine
Winter 2014, Volume 9, Number 1
http://www.pnpco.com/pn03000.html

Article
Telemedicine for disaster management: Can it transform chaos into an organized, structured care from the distance?
Rifat Latifi, MD, FACS; Elizabeth H. Tilley, PhD
Winter 2014; pages 25-37
Abstract
Background: Telemedicine and advanced technologies that ensure telepresence have become common practice and are an effective way of providing healthcare services.
Materials and methods: The authors conducted a traditional narrative review of English literature through search engines (Medline, Pub Med, Embase, and Science Direct) using mesh terms “telemedicine,” “telepresence,” “earthquake,” “disaster,” “natural disaster,” and “man-made disaster” published between January 1, 1980 and September 30, 2013. For our analysis, only published studies were selected when telemedicine or telepresence was reported for disaster management, both in real life and in mock and simulation situations. Original articles, clinical trials, case presentations, and review articles were considered. Books and book chapters were used as well. Data from the International Disaster Database were included in the review to provide a sense of worldwide disaster occurrence. Symposia and other meetings were searched and used when available.
Results: Between January 1980 and September 2013, 17,565 disasters recorded. During this study period, 878 articles, chapters, books, and presentations were reported. Of these, only 88 articles and books fulfilled our selection criteria. Six articles described the effectiveness of telemedicine in mock simulations and disaster drills, and 63 presented the need and discussed how telemedicine would be beneficial in disaster response. Only 19 articles provided examples of effective use of telemedicine in disaster response. However, these studies demonstrated telemedicine as a valuable tool for communication between front-line humanitarian aid workers and expert physicians at remote locations.
Conclusion: Telemedicine has not been used thus in the management of disasters, despite its great potential. There is an acute need for establishing telemedicine programs in high risk areas for disasters, so that when these disasters strike, existing telemedicine networks can be used, rather than attempting to bring solutions into a chaotic situation postevent.

BMC Health Services Research
(Accessed 21 June 2014)
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmchealthservres/content

Research article
eHealth and mHealth initiatives in Bangladesh: A scoping study
Tanvir Ahmed, Henry Lucas, Azfar Sadun Khan, Rubana Islam, Abbas Bhuiya, Mohammad Iqbal BMC Health Services Research 2014, 14:260 (16 June 2014)
Abstract (provisional)
Background
The health system of Bangladesh is haunted by challenges of accessibility and affordability. Despite impressive gains in many health indicators, recent evidence has raised concerns regarding the utilization, quality and equity of healthcare. In the context of new and unfamiliar public health challenges including high population density and rapid urbanization, eHealth and mHealth are being promoted as a route to cost-effective, equitable and quality healthcare in Bangladesh. The aim of this paper is to understand their true potential.
Methods
This scoping study applies a combination of research tools to explore 26 eHealth and mHealth initiatives in Bangladesh. A screening matrix was developed by modifying the framework of Arksey & O’Malley, further complemented by case study and SWOT analysis to identify common traits among the selected interventions. The WHO health system building blocks approach was then used for thematic analysis of these traits.
Results
Findings suggest that most eHealth and mHealth initiatives have proliferated within the private sector, using mobile phones. The most common initiatives include tele-consultation, prescription and referral. While a minority of projects have a monitoring and evaluation framework, less than a quarter have undertaken evaluation. Most of the initiatives use a health management information system (HMIS) to monitor implementation. However, these do not provide for effective sharing of information and interconnectedness among the various actors. There are extremely few individuals with eHealth training in Bangladesh and there is a strong demand for capacity building and experience sharing, especially for implementation and policy making. There is also a lack of research evidence on how to design interventions to meet the needs of the population and on potential benefits.
Conclusion
This study concludes that Bangladesh needs considerable preparation and planning to sustain eHealth and mHealth initiatives successfully. Additional formative and operational research is essential to explore the true potential of the technology. Frameworks for regulation in regards to eHealth governance should be the aim of future research on the integration of eHealth and mHealth into the Bangladesh health system.

BMC Infectious Diseases
Accessed 21 June 2014
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcinfectdis/content

Research article
Cost effectiveness of a pentavalent rotavirus vaccine in Oman
Salah Thabit Al Awaidy, Berhanu G Gebremeskel, Idris Al Obeidani, Said Al Baqlani, Wisam Haddadin and Megan A O’Brien
BMC Infectious Diseases 2014, 14:334 doi:10.1186/1471-2334-14-334
Published: 17 June 2014
Abstract (provisional)
Background
Rotavirus gastroenteritis (RGE) is the leading cause of diarrhea in young children in Oman, incurring substantial healthcare and economic burden. We propose to formally assess the potential cost effectiveness of implementing universal vaccination with a pentavalent rotavirus vaccine (RV5) on reducing the health care burden and costs associated with rotavirus gastroenteritis (RGE) in Oman
Methods
A Markov model was used to compare two birth cohorts, including children who were administered the RV5 vaccination versus those who were not, in a hypothetical group of 65,500 children followed for their first 5 years of life in Oman. The efficacy of the vaccine in reducing RGE-related hospitalizations, emergency department (ED) and office visits, and days of parental work loss for children receiving the vaccine was based on the results of the Rotavirus Efficacy and Safety Trial (REST). The outcome of interest was cost per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) gained from health care system and societal perspectives.
Results
A universal RV5 vaccination program is projected to reduce, hospitalizations, ED visits, outpatient visits and parental work days lost due to rotavirus infections by 89%, 80%, 67% and 74%, respectively. In the absence of RV5 vaccination, RGE-related societal costs are projected to be 2,023,038 Omani Rial (OMR) (5,259,899 United States dollars [USD]), including 1,338,977 OMR (3,481,340 USD) in direct medical costs. However, with the introduction of RV5, direct medical costs are projected to be 216,646 OMR (563,280 USD). Costs per QALY saved would be 1,140 OMR (2,964 USD) from the health care payer perspective. An RV5 vaccination program would be considered cost saving, from the societal perspective.
Conclusions
Universal RV5 vaccination in Oman is likely to significantly reduce the health care burden and costs associated with rotavirus gastroenteritis and may be cost-effective from the payer perspective and cost saving from the societal perspective.

BMC Public Health
(Accessed 21 June 2014)
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcpublichealth/content

Research article
What interventions are effective on reducing inequalities in maternal and child health in low- and middle-income settings? A systematic review
Beibei Yuan, Mats Malqvist, Nadja Trygg, Xu Qian, Nawi Ng and Sarah Thomsen
Author Affiliations
BMC Public Health 2014, 14:634 doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-634
Published: 21 June 2014
Abstract (provisional)
Background
The deadline for achieving Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 is approaching, but inequalities between disadvantaged and other populations is a significant barrier for progress towards achieving these goals. This systematic review aims to collect evidence about the differential effects of interventions on different sociodemographic groups in order to identify interventions that were effective in reducing maternal or child health inequalities.
Methods
We searched the PubMed, EMBASE and other relevant databases. The reference lists of included reviews were also screened to find more eligible studies. We included experimental or observational studies that assessed the effects of interventions on maternal and child health, but only studies that report quantitative inequality outcomes were finally included for analysis.
Results
22 articles about the effectiveness of interventions on equity in maternal and child health were finally included. These studies covered five kinds of interventions: immunization campaigns, nutrition supplement programs, health care provision improvement interventions, demand side interventions, and mixed interventions. The outcome indicators covered all MDG 4 and three MDG 5 outcomes. None of the included studies looked at equity in maternal mortality, adolescent birth rate and unmet need for family planning. The included studies reported inequalities based on gender, income, education level or comprehensive socioeconomic status. Stronger or moderate evidence showed that all kinds of the included interventions may be more effective in improving maternal or child health for those from disadvantaged groups.
Conclusion
Studies about the effectiveness of interventions on equity in maternal or child health are limited. The limited evidence showed that the interventions that were effective in reducing inequity included the improvement of health care delivery by outreach methods, using human resources in local areas or provided at the community level nearest to residents and the provision of financial or knowledge support to demand side

BMC Public Health
(Accessed 21 June 2014)
http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcpublichealth/content

Research article
A meta-analysis of risk factors for depression in adults and children after natural disasters
Bihan Tang, Xu Liu, Yuan Liu, Chen Xue and Lulu Zhang
Author Affiliations
BMC Public Health 2014, 14:623 doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-623
Published: 19 June 2014
Abstract (provisional)
Background
A number of studies have shown a range of negative psychological symptoms (e.g. depression) after exposure to natural disasters. The aim of this study was to determine risk factors for depression in both children and adults who have survived natural disasters.
Methods
Four electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and PsychInfo) were used to search for observational studies (case-control, cross-sectional, and cohort studies) about depression following natural disasters. The literature search, study selection, and data extraction were conducted independently by two authors. Thirty-one articles were included in the study, of which twenty included adult participants and eleven included child participants. Summary estimates were obtained using random-effects models. Subgroup analysis, sensitivity analysis, and publication bias tests were performed on the data.
Results
The prevalence of depression after natural disasters ranged from 5.8% to 54.0% in adults and from 7.5% to 44.8% in children. We found a number of risk factors for depression after exposure to natural disasters. For adults, the significant predictors were being female; not married; holding religious beliefs; having poor education; prior trauma; experiencing fear, injury, or bereavement during the disaster; or losing employment or property ,suffering house damage as a result of the disaster. For children, the significant predictors were prior trauma; being trapped during the disaster; experiencing injury, fear, or bereavement during the disaster; witnessing injury/death during the disaster; or having poor social support.
Conclusions
The current analysis provides evidence of risk factors for depression in survivors of natural disasters. Further research is necessary to design interventions to improve the mental health of survivors of natural disasters.

Clinical Infectious Diseases (CID)
Volume 59 Issue 1 July 1, 2014
http://cid.oxfordjournals.org/content/current

Crossing Borders: One World, Global Health
Clive M. Brown and Martin S. Cetron, Section Editors
Rotavirus Enteritis in Dadaab Refugee Camps: Implications for Immunization Programs in Kenya and Resettlement Countries
Maurice Ope, Steve B. Ochieng, Collins Tabu, Nina Marano.
Dadaab refugee camp, established in Kenya in 1991, is host to >500 000 refugees, most of whom are Somali in origin [1]. Annually, the United States resettles approximately 11 000 refugees from Africa, 4000 of them from Kenya. Although substantial progress has been made to provide safe water and improve sanitation in Dadaab, diarrheal disease remains among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality. Several disease outbreaks, including hepatitis E virus [2], cholera [3], and wild poliovirus [4], have been attributed to poor sanitation in the camps…
Editorial comment (C. B.) …Along with the provision of safe water and ensuring proper sanitation and hygiene, important strategies for the control of diarrheal diseases (depending on age) include breastfeeding, using oral rehydration solution, and, if diarrhea is moderate to severe, intravenous fluids, zinc supplementation, and immunization with rotavirus vaccine. Overall, rotavirus vaccine has been shown to be 30% effective against all-cause severe gastroenteritis, and 51%–93% protective against rotavirus gastroenteritis [14–16]. In addition to recommending rotavirus vaccine inclusion in national immunization programs, for countries where diarrheal deaths account for ≥10% of mortality among children aged <5 years, WHO strongly recommends introduction of the vaccine. The prevalence in this refugee camp was twice that value; thus, evaluating rotavirus vaccine as a childhood vaccine in refugee camps will provide important information for its efficacy in this setting and potentially support attaining MDG4 goals.

Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation
(Accessed 21 June 2014)
http://www.resource-allocation.com/

Research
Incremental cost of increasing access to maternal health care services: perspectives from a demand and supply side intervention in Eastern Uganda
Chrispus Mayora, Elizabeth Ekirapa-Kiracho, David Bishai, David H Peters, Olico Okui and Sebastian Olikira Baine
Author Affiliations
Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation 2014, 12:14 doi:10.1186/1478-7547-12-14
Published: 19 June 2014
Abstract (provisional)
Introduction
High maternal and infant mortality continue to be major challenges to the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals for many low and middle-income countries. There is now evidence that voucher initiatives can increase access to maternal health services. However, a dearth of knowledge exists on the cost implications of voucher schemes. This paper estimates the incremental costs of a demand and supply side intervention aimed at increasing access to maternal health care services.
Methods
This costing study was part of a quasi-experimental voucher study conducted in two districts in Eastern Uganda to explore the impact of demand and supply – side incentives on increasing access to maternal health services. The provider’s perspective was used and the ingredients approach to costing was employed. Costs were based on market prices as recorded in program records. Total, unit, and incremental costs were calculated.
Results
The estimated total financial cost of the intervention for the one year of implementation was US$525,472 (US$1 = 2200UgShs). The major cost drivers included costs for transport vouchers (35.3%), health system strengthening (29.2%) and vouchers for maternal health services (18.2%). The average cost of transport per woman to and from the health facility was US$4.6. The total incremental costs incurred on deliveries (excluding caesarean section) was US$317,157 and US$107,890 for post natal care (PNC). The incremental costs per additional delivery and PNC attendance were US$23.9 and US$7.6 respectively.
Conclusion
Subsidizing maternal health care costs through demand and supply – side initiatives may not require significant amounts of resources contrary to what would be expected. With Uganda’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita of US$551 (2012). Incremental cost per additional delivery represents about 5% of Uganda’s GDP per capita to save a mother and probably her new born. For many low income countries, this may not be affordable, yet reliance on donor funding is often not sustainable. Alternative ways of raising additional resources for health must be explored. These include; encouraging private investments in critical sectors such as rural transport, health service provision; mobilizing households to save financial resources for preparedness, and financial targeting for the most vulnerable

Forum for Development Studies
Volume 41, Issue 2, 2014
http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/sfds20/current

On the Fractured, Fragmented and Disrupted Landscapes of Conservation
Rune Flikkea*
DOI: 10.1080/08039410.2014.918759
pages 173-182
Published online: 17 Jun 2014
Abstract
Since Agenda 21, drawn up after the UN Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, the merger of environmentalism and development has been pitched as a ‘win–win’ scenario often coined as ‘conservation-as-development’. By integrating local populations in the environmental projects ‘conservation-as-development’ claim to overcome negative aspects of the nature–culture divide. Using the arguments forwarded by Cortes-Vazquez, Turner, Semedi and Howell in this issue, the article critically discusses the development of these environmentalist efforts, exemplified by the UNESCO Biosphere reserves and the UN-REDD, to suggest that the natureculture divide keep cropping up in new constellations despite the official rhetoric. It is suggested that a solution is to be found in a serious, ethnographic approach that pays attention to the new social networks and material flows that tie local and global worlds together through these forms of environmentalist practices.

When Are Health Systems Ready for New Vaccines? The Introduction of Pneumococcal Vaccine in Malawi
Lot Jata Nyirendaa*, Kristin Ingstad Sandberga & Judith Justiceb
DOI: 10.1080/08039410.2014.894936
pages 317-336
Published online: 31 Mar 2014
Abstract
Increasing coverage of routine immunisation and new vaccines is key to reaching Millennium Development Goal number four (MDG 4) on reducing child mortality. Malawi, despite a weak health system, is on track to achieve MDG 4, partly because of its high-performing immunisation programme. Among the early adopters of new vaccines, with major support from Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation, Malawi introduced pneumococcal vaccine in 2011 during a time of severe political and economic crisis. This exploratory case study (part of a larger research project on explaining differential immunisation coverage, conducted in 2010 and 2011, using primarily qualitative methods including in-depth interviewing) looks at the decision-making and policy process for vaccine introduction within the broader political–economic context. Based on a framework of benchmarks on preparedness of immunisation systems and assessments of integration with health systems, the study findings suggest that pneumococcal vaccine introduction was more integrated with key health system functions the closer it got to the point of service delivery. Furthermore, although the vaccine introduction succeeded in relation to immunisation targets and prevention of disease, it may have had substantial indirect costs to other targeted health interventions and broader health systems functions at times when basic amenities are in short supply or unavailable. For a donor-dependent country such as Malawi, policy choices are limited to what is on offer – and new vaccines were on offer; other crucial necessities were not. Further research could establish with more certainty the conditions under which vaccine introduction strengthens health systems that are already weak, and when they push systems further into crisis.

International Journal of Infectious Diseases
Vol 24 Complete | July 2014 | Pages 1-54
http://www.ijidonline.com/current

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Corona virus, MERS-CoV. Conclusions from the 2nd Scientific Advisory Board Meeting of the WHO Collaborating Center for Mass Gathering Medicine, Riyadh
Ziad A. Memish, Abdullah Assiri, Rafaat Alhakeem, Saber Yezli, Malak Almasri, Alimuddin Zumla
Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq, Christian Drosten, Ali Albarrak, Eskild Petersen
published online 12 May 2014.
The 2nd Scientific Advisory Board Meeting of the Global Center for Mass Gathering Medicine, Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, met April 28 – 29 in Riyadh to discuss risk of infectious diseases and research and surveillance during Hajj. Due to the on-going outbreak of MERS-CoV and especially the recent increase in case detection in Jeddah, (138 MERS cases were reported from Jeddah between 11 to 26 April 2014), the agenda for the second day was focused on MERS-CoV, both in relation to the risk it presents for the forthcoming Umrah during Ramadan and the Hajj, but also in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Middle East in general. The Ministry of Health used the opportunity to ask the Scientific Advisory Board to review the MERS-CoV situation globally with specific attention to MERS in the country and review case definition, infection control guidelines and risk assessment to nationals, residents, health care workers, family contacts, camel owners, and travelers to KSA, and the future control.