Disability Rights are Human Rights: Pushing Ethiopia Towards a Rights-based Movement

Official estimates suggest that 95 percent of Ethiopia’s disabled live under the poverty line and are unemployed. To get by, many must beg or depend on family and friends. The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, the ministry responsible for enforcing rights of disabled people, is a paper tiger, toothless at that. Recent data suggest that only one percent of Ethiopian buildings and roads are fully accessible to the disabled. Yet accessibility is not only a physical, but also a social, cultural, and political sine qua non—and so a matter of human rights. Rights of Ethiopia’s disabled have been quashed or ignored for millennia. Generations have grown up in a society shaped by church dogma, which construes disability as the result of sin, a source of shame. Whether disability is physical or cognitive, regardless of an affected person’s courage and capacity to cope, the disabled have been excluded from many aspects of life. Barring a lucky few (including one author), Ethiopia’s disabled can hope for charity at best, but at worst may be hidden from neighbors, driven from their homes, and forced to beg to survive. The untapped potential is enormous. Data is deficient, but the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 17.6 percent of Ethiopians live with disabilities. Most are not helpless, yet an overwhelming majority remain uneducated, unemployed, and so denied the dignified lives that human beings deserve. Given recent changes in Ethiopia, however, all this could change

Psychological characteristics of religious delusions

Purpose Religious delusions are common and are considered to be particularly difficult to treat. In this study we investigated what psychological processes may underlie the reported treatment resistance. In particular, we focused on the perceptual, cognitive, affective and behavioural mechanisms held to maintain delusions in cognitive models of psychosis, as these form the key treatment targets in cognitive behavioural therapy. We compared religious delusions to delusions with other content. Methods Comprehensive measures of symptoms and psychological processes were completed by 383 adult participants with delusions and a schizophrenia spectrum diagnosis, drawn from two large studies of cognitive behavioural therapy for psychosis. Results Binary logistic regression showed that religious delusions were associated with higher levels of grandiosity (OR 7.5; 95 % CI 3.9–14.1), passivity experiences, having internal evidence for their delusion (anomalous experiences or mood states), and being willing to consider alternatives to their delusion (95 % CI for ORs 1.1–8.6). Levels of negative symptoms were lower. No differences were found in delusional conviction, insight or attitudes towards treatment. Conclusions Levels of positive symptoms, particularly anomalous experiences and grandiosity, were high, and may contribute to symptom persistence. However, contrary to previous reports, we found no evidence that people with religious delusions would be less likely to engage in any form of help. Higher levels of flexibility may make them particularly amenable to cognitive behavioural approaches, but particular care should be taken to preserve self-esteem and valued aspects of beliefs and experiences

Disability Rights are Human Rights: Pushing Ethiopia Towards a Rights-based Movement

Official estimates suggest that 95 percent of Ethiopia’s disabled live under the poverty line and are unemployed. To get by, many must beg or depend on family and friends. The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, the ministry responsible for enforcing rights of disabled people, is a paper tiger, toothless at that. Recent data suggest that only one percent of Ethiopian buildings and roads are fully accessible to the disabled. Yet accessibility is not only a physical, but also a social, cultural, and political sine qua non—and so a matter of human rights. Rights of Ethiopia’s disabled have been quashed or ignored for millennia. Generations have grown up in a society shaped by church dogma, which construes disability as the result of sin, a source of shame. Whether disability is physical or cognitive, regardless of an affected person’s courage and capacity to cope, the disabled have been excluded from many aspects of life. Barring a lucky few (including one author), Ethiopia’s disabled can hope for charity at best, but at worst may be hidden from neighbors, driven from their homes, and forced to beg to survive. The untapped potential is enormous. Data is deficient, but the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 17.6 percent of Ethiopians live with disabilities. Most are not helpless, yet an overwhelming majority remain uneducated, unemployed, and so denied the dignified lives that human beings deserve. Given recent changes in Ethiopia, however, all this could change

Eritrean Pharmacovigilance System: Key Strategies, Success Stories, Challenges and Lessons Learned

Establishing a mature pharmacovigilance system in a low-income country is a challenge. Nevertheless, Eritrea, one such low-income country, was able to achieve a fully fledged pharmacovigilance system within a period of almost 9 years. In the last five years (2014–2019), the Eritrean Pharmacovigilance Centre has submitted, on average, 646 individual case safety reports (ICSRs) per million inhabitants per year to the World Health Organization (WHO) global database of ICSRs. As a result, Eritrea has been rated among the top reporting countries in Africa. The center has detected about 30 safety signals, achieved maturity level three on the WHO rapid benchmarking assessment, and gained huge political commitment. In the last few years, monitoring of product quality through the pharmacovigilance system found approximately 55 medical products that were either substandard or falsified and were subsequently recalled from the Eritrean market by the National Medicines and Food Administration. The aim of this article is to describe Eritrea’s success stories, key strategies for success, challenges encountered, and lessons learned to share them with the international pharmacovigilance community and beyond

Afdeyu Research Substation: Hydrometeorological Data Analysis 1984-2007

This report presents a basic analyis of the data collected on agroclimatology, erosion, and soil and water conservation at Afdeyu Station in the central highlands of Eritrea between 1984 and 2007. Datasets and graphs include rainfall, air and soil surface temperatures, soil loss, surface runoff, river discharge, and land use including cropping patterns of the measured catchment

Prevalence of CYP2C8*2 and *3 among Eritreans and its Potential Impact on Artesunate/Amodiaquine Treatment

Background: In Eritrea, artesunate–amodiaquine is the first-line treatment against uncomplicated malaria. Amodiaquine, which is mainly bio-transformed by CYP2C8, is known to be associated with adverse events of different severity. Extrapyramidal events are among the less common but have been reported with non-negligible frequency in Eritrea. This study was conducted to investigate the allele frequencies of CYP2C8*2 and *3, both associated with decreased amodiaquine metabolism, among the Eritrean population. Methods: During September–November 2018, dried blood samples from 380 participants and 17 patients who previously had experienced extrapyramidal symptoms following treatment of artesunate–amodiaquine were collected and PCR-RFLP genotyped for CYP2C8*2 and *3. Results: The allele frequencies of CYP2C8*2 and *3 were determined as 5.9% (95% CI: 4.4– 7.8) and 4.6% (95% CI: 3.2– 6.3), respectively. Four out of the 17 patients with extrapyramidal reactions showed to be carriers of the alleles. Conclusion: CYP2C8*2 and *3 frequencies among Eritreans were found to be intermediate between the documented for Caucasian and African populations. These findings, along with the alleles not being decisive for the occurrence of extrapyramidal events, might be of importance regarding the amodiaquine-containing malaria treatment in Eritrea. Furthermore, it suggests a significant proportion of slow amodiaquine metabolizers in the Sahel region, information of potential interest in the context of amodiaquine-involving seasonal malaria chemoprevention

Awareness, Perception, and Utilization of Skin Lightening Agents Among Females of Asmara, Eritrea: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: The use of skin lightening agents (SLAs) is common among African females with black skin color. Although they usually contain harmful ingredients and can cause complications, their use remains to be a common practice. This study was conducted to assess the awareness, perception, and utilization of SLAs among females residing in Asmara, Eritrea. Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study using a quantitative approach was conducted in representative samples of all beauty salons available in Asmara from May to July, 2021. The study participants were selected using two-stage stratified cluster sampling and data were collected through a face-to-face interview using a structured questionnaire. Descriptive analysis and logistic regression, at bivariate and multivariate level, were performed. Results: The study enrolled 721 females and 684 completed the study. The majority of the respondents had the perception that SLAs can make someone light colored (84.4%), look beautiful (67.8%), trendy and fashionable (55.0%), and white skin is more attractive than dark skin (58.8%). About two-thirds (64.2%) reported they had previously used SLAs, mainly influenced by friends (60.5%). Approximately 46% were current users, while 53.6% stopped it mainly due to adverse effects, fear of adverse effects and ineffec-tiveness. A total of 150 products including natural ingredients were mentioned being used to lighten the skin, and Aneeza, Natural face, and Betamethasone containing brands were among the top used products. The occurrence of at least one adverse effect due to the use of SLAs was 43.7%, while 66.5% were satisfied with the use of SLAs. Additionally, employment status and perception of SLAs were found to be determinants of being a current user. Conclusion: Utilization of SLAs, including products containing harmful or medicinal ingredients, was prevalent among the females of Asmara city. Thus, coordinated regulatory interventions are recommended to tackle unsafe practices and raise public awareness to promote the safe use of cosmetics