Africa News

Archive for November, 2010

KITUI, When Mary Muli and her husband failed to conceive a child, they followed the long-held tradition among the Kemba in Kenya’s Eastern Province and brought another woman into their home to bear children for them.

“We were married for 30 years when we realised we would die without children,” Muli, 60, told IRIN/PlusNews from her home in Kitui District. “I brought Teresia to bear us children and to one day remain behind when we are all gone.”

The four children Teresia Nthenya, now aged 38, bore for the couple are considered to be Muli’s. “She is my property and my husband’s duty was only to bear children with her,” Muli said.

Although the arrangement is considered successful because of the children, it has had disastrous consequences: Nthenya is HIV positive, while Muli’s husband died 18 months ago from tuberculosis, a common opportunistic infection associated with HIV. Muli herself coughs constantly, but brushes it off as nothing more than a symptom of old age.

“I used to sleep with him and he also slept with his real wife; we used no condoms,” Nthenya said. “I am HIV positive and I know I got it here, from the man.”

”I brought Teresia to bear us children and to one day remain behind when we are all gone”
According to Dr John Lugedi, the Kitui District medical officer, the tradition of surrogate wives is a significant contributor to the spread of HIV in the area.

“The risks of this kind of culture are very high because the people involved do not use condoms,” he said. “Men do not want to believe that it may be them with the [infertility] problem and they keep on [trying to have children with different women] hoping to be lucky some day. What you have is a chain of infected people in the process.”

He noted that the high levels of poverty in Kitui, where more than 60 percent of the population lives on less than US$1 per day, had allowed the practice to flourish. Women become child bearers, he explained, because they know that as long as they bear children, their basic needs will be met by the family they live with. “When you let poverty mingle with such risky cultures, the result can be very devastating in the war against HIV/AIDS,” Lugedi added.

“Most of the widows and orphans that we support in the district are from this kind of marriage arrangement,” said Liz Mwendwa, coordinator of a local NGO, Arms of Hope. “There is a need to concentrate awareness on the eradication of this practice or to look at safer ways of doing it, but I think it would be a daunting task to encourage condom use when the end goal is to have children.”

Although the HIV prevalence rate in Kitui of 3.9 percent is lower than the national average of 7.4 percent, the risk factors for HIV are high. Poverty and food shortages can drive women into commercial sex work, and the region’s arid climate forces many men to spend long periods away from home as migrant labour.
9 January 2009

KAKAMEGA -AHIC -As nurses met between 7th and 9th this month, at Masinde Muliro University in Kakamega, for the 50th National Nurses Association of Kenya (NNAK) conference & AGM ,nurses expectations was very high that the forum would yield the much anticipated feedback on the problems afflicting nurses in the country.

Speaker after speaker rose and spoke of how nurses’ issues had been neglected for a very long time and time was ripe to address them .But the major disappointment dawned on many nurses present when the guest of honour, Hon. Anyang Nyong’o, Minister of Medical services didn’t turn up. He was represented by the Director of Medical Services ,Dr.Francis Kimani.

Before Dr. Kimani read the minister speech Mr. Luke K’odambo ,the Chairman NNAK,asked the government to provide nurses with a good working environment that is safe .He pointed out the numerous risks that nurses face in their place of work by quoting a study conducted at the Kenyatta National hospital that showed many nurses had contracted TB in the line of duty .He urged the government to commence protecting nurses by ensuring that patients with highly infectious diseases are isolated. He further cautioned the government from playing politics with issues affecting nurses. Mr.K’odambo was reacting to a media report that had appeared the previous day quoting assistant minister of Medical services ,Hon. Danson Mungatana, saying that nurses had been awarded Ksh.10,000 as uniform allowance. He asked the Dr. Kimani who was present to confirm whether it was true or not.

Dr. Kimani in his speech read on behalf of Prof. Anyang Nyong’o .minister of Medical services thanked the nurses for their dedicated service especially during the post election violence witnessed as a result of the disputed general election. Most nurses continued serving in hospitals even when other health personnel fled for their safety.This was despite the security risk that most nurses faced at that time .Some nurses worked continuously for over a period of 72 hours .Unlike the security officers who received an allowance for their work during the skirmishes not a single penny was awarded to any nurse in form of an allowance. Dr. Kimani confirmed that the government had not adequately addressed the plight of nurses and asked for patience as it looked for ways of sorting out their issues.

But most of the nurses reacted angrily to the news of another promise that the government has been making for years .Currently most of the nurses are frustrated at the pathetic conditions in the government health institutions. Most of them had high hopes that with the promise that the minister of medical services had given when given the health post, the government will improve their working conditions.

Most of the nurses interviewed at the meeting expressed disappointment at the way the government has been handling issues affecting them .One of the nurses who talked on condition of anonymity, said that she will be moving to the US next year as the government has nothing good to offer nurses.

My Jophinus Musundi the Secretary of Kenya professional Nurses Association (KPNA) who was present at the meeting felt that nurses had been short changed .He said that after calling off the nurses strike that had been issued early this year ,a task force was formed to look into the nurses grievances .According to Mr. Musundi, the task force came up with a resolution that nurses will be paid Ksh.50,000 uniform allowance,Ksh.20,000 risk allowance ,Ksh.10,000 uniform allowance Ksh15,000 extraneous allowance and Ksh.30,000 non-practicing allowance. He thanked the government for issuing Ksh.10,000 as uniform allowance but said that nurses are still waiting for the balance of Ksh.40,000 for the uniform allowance to make it a total of Ksh.50,000. He was also angered by the way the government chose to announce the award of uniform allowance in the media yet the matter was before a task force and none of the nurses’ leaders was either informed or consulted. He said that nurse will be meeting in another forum in November this year at Garissa to deliberate on their issues and if by then the government will not have addressed the nurses’ grievances adequately then the nurse will decide on the way forward.

This development comes at a timewhen Kenya and other developing countries are loosing highly skilled health workers to the US and UK who offer very attractive salaries for nurses and doctors. Hospitals like Kenyatta National hospitals have turned to hunting grounds for foreign agents who recruit nurses to developed countries.

Factors influencing medical professionals to emigrate include poor remuneration, bad working conditions, an oppressive political climate, persecution of intellectuals, and discrimination. Researchers cite lack of funding, poor facilities, limited career structures, and poor intellectual stimulation as important reasons for dissatisfaction. Other key reasons for emigrating are personal ones. These include security, the threat of violence, and the wish to provide a good education for their children

The government should look for ways of absorbing health workers that graduate every year and pay them attractive salaries to safeguard the future of its citizens. An average nurse is currently overworked demoralized and for the government to achieve the vision 2030 and the millennium development goals it better have a clear vision for its nurses. AHIC 14th October 2008

Source / Author – William Omwega

The task force constituted to investigate the operations of Kenya Medical Supplies Agency, officially handed over its report to the Prof.Anyang Nyong’o, Minister of Medical Services .Among the recommendations by the task force is that the CEO of Kemsa Dr.Charles Kandie be sacked .

Dr Kandie, has been on forced leave since July to pave way for investigations into alleged mismanagement of Kemsa. The report has revealed several irregularities including, Kemsa not complying with procurement procedures, purchasing of substandard goods or goods that are not required, at inflated prices.

The report further reveals that Kemsa purchased drugs at inflated prices during the post-election period early this year, costing the government a loss of Ksh.46 Million.

Prof. Nyong’o welcomed the report and promised to implement it .He however blamed the ministry of health of failing to guide Kemsa in ensuring that it achieves its objective .He went on to say that the government will not use the current funds to offset bills pending at Kemsa.

He promised to implement the report within a fixed time frame to revive the sole drug procurer and avoid previous pitfalls.

“We must ascertain Kemsa is capable before injecting resources”, Nyong’o explained. He also assured the public that the new CEO would be appointed based on an open, transparent and competitive process

The Medical minister said it was necessary for Kemsa to remain a non-profit commercial agency so that the drugs and non-pharmaceutical supplies remained affordable for all Kenyans. Kemsa’s troubles are aggravated by parallel procurement systems by development partners.

For example, the non-pharmaceuticals produced by Kemsa were 151 per cent lower than the Ministry of Health’s in 2005/06.Nyong’o took issue with the Global Fund saying their policies were not user friendly making use of the monies a difficult task.

The task force was headed by a former director of Medical services Dr. Richard Muga revealed a division of the management sucked into the affairs the board.

The report offers fresh hope of a new beginning in the way that pharmaceuticals and non-pharmaceuticals are purchased and supplied in the government hospitals. Most of the public health facilities in the country are currently grappling with an acute shortage of essential drugs and other goods supplied by Kemsa. AHIC-22nd October 2008-

Source / Author – William Omwega

Burundi (pronounced [buˈɾundi]), officially the Republic of Burundi, is a small country in the Great Lakes region of Africa. It is bordered by Rwanda on the north, Tanzania on the south and east, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the west. Although the country is landlocked, much of its western border is adjacent to Lake Tanganyika. The country’s modern name is derived from its Bantu language, Kirundi.

Geographically isolated, facing population pressures and having sparse resources, Burundi has the lowest GDP per capita in the world, arguably making it the poorest country on the planet.

One scientific study of 178 nations rated Burundi’s population as having the lowest satisfaction with life of all.

Capital
(and largest city) Tripoli
32°54′N, 13°11′E

Official languages Arabic

Demonym Libyan

Government Military dictatorship Khakistocracy Jamahiriya

- Leader and Guide of the Revolution Muammar al-Gaddafi

- Secretary General of the General People’s Congress Miftah Muhammed K’eba

- Prime Minister Baghdadi Mahmudi Independence

- Relinquished by Italy 10 February 1947

- From France / United Kingdom

- Under United Nations Trusteeship 24 December 1951
- Area – Total 1,759,540 km² (17th) 679,359 sq mi

- Water (%) Negligible

- Population – estimate 6,036,914 (105th)

- 2006 census 5,670,688

- Density 3.2/km² (218th) 8.4/sq mi GDP (PPP) 2007 estimate

- Total $78.79 billion (67th)

- Per capita $13,100 (58th)

- HDI (2005) ▲0.818 (High) (56th)

- Currency Dinar (LYD)

- Time zone EET (UTC+2)

- Summer (DST) not observed (UTC+2)

- Internet TLD .ly

- Calling code +218

- Includes 350,000 foreigners; Libyan 2006 census, accessed September 15, 2006

Source : wikipedia.org

Al-Jumhūriyyah at-Tūnisiyyah

Tunisian Republic

Motto: Hurriya, Nidham, ‘Adala
” Liberty , Order, Justice”

Anthem: Himat Al Hima

Capital
(and largest city) Tunis
36°50′N, 10°9′E

Official languages Arabic

Demonym -Tunisian

Government Republic

* President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
* Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi
* Independence – from France March 20, 1956
* Area – Total 163,610 km² (92nd)
63,170 sq mi
* Water (%) 5.0
* Population – July 2005 estimate 10,102,000 (78th) – 1994 census 8,785,711
* – Density 62/km² (133rd (2005))
161/sq mi
* GDP (PPP) 2007 estimate – Total $ 97.74 billion (60th)
* Per capita $9,630 (73rd)
* Gini (2000) 39.8 (medium)
* HDI (2007) ▲ 0.766 (medium) (91st)
* Currency Tunisian dinar (TND)
* Time zone CET (UTC+1)
* – Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
* Internet TLD .tn
* Calling code +216

Source:wikipedia.org