The pervasive triad of food security, gender inequity and women\u27s health: Exploratory research from sub-Saharan Africa

Objectives: This study was designed to explore the interactions between food securing activities, health and gender equity from the perspective of rural east African women. The specific objectives were to document the critical interaction among these three issues - food security, gender inequity, women\u27s health within the context of sub-Saharan Africa; to describe the nature of this triad from the perspective of women farmers in Africa; and to propose a framework for linking available interventions to the vicious nature of this triad. Setting: In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with rural women farmers in Kwale District, Kenya and Bagamoyo District, Tanzania. Methods: A total of 12 in-depth interviews and 4 focus group discussions have been included in this analysis. Transcribed text from interviews and focus group discussions were coded and thematic conceptual matrices were developed to compare dimensions of common themes across interviews and settings. A thematic analysis was then performed and a framework developed to understand the nature of the triad and explore the potential for interventions within the interactions. Findings: The vicious cycle of increasing work, lack of time, and lack of independent decision making for women who are responsible for food production and health of their families, has health and social consequences. Food securing activities have negative health consequences for women, which are further augmented by issues of gender inequity. Conclusion: The African development community must respond by thinking of creative solutions and appropriate interventions for the empowerment of women farmers in the region to ensure their health

Factors contributing to high frequency of vulnerable road user injury in Dar Es Salaam

Paper presented at the 30th Annual Southern African Transport Conference 11-14 July 2011 "Africa on the Move", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.A Road traffic injury involving vulnerable road users (VRUs) is a serious problem in Dar es Salaam. VRUs fatalities due to road trafflc crashes reported in the year 2007 and 2008 were 79 percent of the 799 fatalities for all road user groups. Police records over the years consistently cite inappropriate road user actions as contributing factor to the occurrence of more than three quarters of the reported traffic crashes. The purpose of the study was to uncover the attitudes, road safety knowledge and beliefs of the road users so as to identify what causes their unsafe behaviour in traffic from the users' perspective. In-depth interviews involving a wide spectrum of road users selected using a purposeful sampling strategy were conducted. Analysis of themes followed a qualitative approach where the Information collected was subjected to content analysis where key themes and concepts were identlfled. Emerging themes and patterns were documented. Factors contributing to the high VRU injuries as indentified by the participants included lack of safety knowledge for all users, use of sub-standard helmets, poor condition of the road infrastructure, blatant violation of traffic regulations due to serious weaknesses in the enforcement system, ineffective motorcycle rider training system, the belief among drivers that the road space belongs to them and not for pedestrians and inadequate assistance to pedestrians crossing at main roads. The medical services in government hospitals are not always accessible immediately to the crash victims especially if they are motorcycle riders. The information obtained may be used as a basis for development of road safety campaign materials and for quantitative studies to determine the relative importance of each factor.This paper was transferred from the original CD ROM created for this conference. The material was published using Adobe Acrobat 10.1.0 Technology. The original CD ROM was produced by Document Transformation Technologies Postal Address: PO Box 560 Irene 0062 South Africa. Tel.: +27 12 667 2074 Fax: +27 12 667 2766 E-mail: nigel@doctech URL: http://www.doctech.co.zaCD sponsored by TRANSNE

Evaluating the outcomes of a faculty capacity development programme on nurse educators in sub-Saharan Africa

Background. The efficient education, deployment and ongoing retention of the nursing and midwifery workforce are key strategies to ensure a wellfunctioning healthcare system. The African region, however, has relatively few funded programmes to develop educational research capacity in novice academics while also addressing their leadership and educational needs.Objectives. To evaluate the outcomes of a faculty capacity development programme on nursing and midwifery educators in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This study explored the scope of scholarship outcomes, career trajectories and leadership outcomes.Methods. A mixed methods study collected quantitative and qualitative data from nursing and midwifery educators (N=26) who enrolled for the sub-Saharan Africa-FAIMER Regional Institute (SAFRI) fellowship between 2009 and 2019. Data from project abstracts presented at a local conference and a subsequent electronic survey were included for review and analysis. Deductive thematic analysis was used to report the findings.Results. Most projects (n=24) focused on undergraduate programmes at the home institutions. All the projects were presented at a local conference and 4 projects were published in peer-reviewed journals. The projects impacted on community and curriculum change, led to improvements in teaching and research and various strategies to improve learning and assessment at home institutions. The reported outcomes relating to the career trajectories of 7 fellows indicate that the programme accrued benefits to their institutions and the  community, to students and their peers, and that they experienced personal benefits.Conclusion. The SAFRI fellowship vision is evident in the projects and subsequent actions of its nursing and midwifery fellows. Nurse educators’ engagement with pedagogical evidence and design strategies has culminated in knowledge to solve some of the education-related challenges in their nursing education institutions

HIV Risk Among Men Who Have Sex With Men, Women Who Have Sex With Women, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Populations in South Africa: A Mini-Review

BACKGROUND: The HIV epidemic in South Africa is characterized mainly by heterosexual transmission. Recently, the importance of targeting key populations and marginalized groups, including men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender people, has been added to the national agenda. OBJECTIVES: This mini-review explores the current state of empirical research on HIV risk and MSM, women who have sex with women (WSW), lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) populations in South Africa in order to assess the current state of research and identify gaps in the literature. METHOD: Peer-reviewed empirical social and behavioral articles on HIV prevalence and risk focusing on MSM, WSW, and LGBT populations published since 2006 were included in this mini-review. RESULTS: In total 35 articles were included: 30 on MSM, gay, and/or bisexual male-identified populations, three on WSW, lesbian, and/or bisexual female-identified populations, two on LGB youth, and none on transgender populations. CONCLUSION: Despite South Africa being the country with the largest number of people living with HIV in the world, there is a limited amount of research in South Africa on HIV and non-normative gender identities and sexualities, especially WSW, lesbian, and/or bisexual female-identified populations, transgender populations, and LGB youth. Research with MSM, WSW, and LGBT populations should be prioritized in South Africa in order to appropriately inform HIV prevention strategies that meet the specific needs of these marginalized groups