Archive for category: Health

Information and stories on health topics.

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Efforts to Improve Water Quality in Myanmar

Water Quality in Myanmar
Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is a nation with 32.1 percent of the population living below the poverty line, according to 2015 data.

Accessing water in Myanmar has always been difficult, despite the country’s natural resources. It once was recognized to have the fourth-richest supply of groundwater in the world, holding more than 19,000 square meters per capita. This is 16 times the available levels of Myanmar’s neighboring country, Bangladesh.

A typical summer season in the last few years would introduce water shortages in only central Myanmar, but now, deforestation – as a result of urbanization – and hot temperatures contribute to water shortages in other additional areas of the country, leaving hundreds of thousands in danger.

However, recent changes to the water system have significantly improved water quality in Myanmar:

Fixing the Irrigation Systems

Myanmar’s agriculture industry provides jobs for 60 percent of workers, so it is crucial that irrigation systems are functional. In the past, Myanmar struggled with irrigation upkeep and water distribution, so The Pyawt Ywar Pump Irrigation Project stepped in to improve irrigation infrastructure, reform water management and provide education to farmers. Since its implementation, farmers and the government have worked together to make sure water distribution is fair and regulated, and farmers have learned how to use land efficiently to increase crop growth. The agriculture industry has improved as a result: the gross domestic product for agriculture increased from 12,316,081.8 MMK mn to 13,964,771.2 MMK mn in just five years.

Purifying Wastewater has Increased Access to Water

Proctor & Gamble’s Children Safe Drinking Water program and World Vision teamed up to give Myanmar residents a tool to clean non-potable water: a powder mixture invented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The powder transforms 10 liters of contaminated water into clean, drinkable water in just half an hour, providing a day’s worth of resources for a five-member family. This means that poor families living in Myanmar can purify water from rivers and streams instead of spending a lot of money on bottled water. P&G has helped with improving Myanmar’s water since 2008, and the water purification tool has helped 200,000 people gain access to safer water.

Decreasing Illness

Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne disease, is a common occurrence in Myanmar because of people’s tendency to collect water in their homes. Stored water attracts mosquitoes and creates a large breeding ground for the disease. Myanmar is labeled as a high burden dengue country, and citizens take preventative measures by learning how to protect their water against mosquitoes and to keep their spaces dry and clean. In 2015, there were 42,913 cases of dengue, but after a year of water education and awareness, the number dropped to 10,770.

Looking Ahead

Access to clean water has increased in the last 15 years, but there is still more to be done. In 2000, 47.31 percent of citizens in rural areas had access to potable water, and that number has increased to 59.85 percent as of 2015, but it is still low. The Joint Monitoring Program for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene plans for universal access to water by 2030, and improving water quality in Myanmar may be achieved with increased awareness and action.

– Katherine Desrosiers
Photo: Flickr

 

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Zipline Launches Drone Delivery Service in Ghana

Drone Delivery Service in Ghana
After Zipline,  a California-based automated logistics company launched its service in Rwanda three years ago, it announced on April 24, 2019 that it would expand its operations to Ghana. Since Zipline has planned to make 600 drone flights a day and deliver more than 170 vaccines, blood products and other life-saving medications to 2,500 facilities, it expects to reach 12 million people. Because this operation is so immense, Zipline is describing its drone delivery service in Ghana as the largest drone delivery service in history.

The Background of Zipline

Zipline’s mission is to provide every human on Earth with instant access to vital medical supplies with small drone aircraft. To accomplish this mission in countries with citizens who struggle to access the medical supplies they need, Zipline operates autonomous systems for delivering lifesaving medicine to the world’s most inaccessible regions.

Zipline began its first drone service in Africa in the country of Rwanda. This service, which began in 2016, provided life-saving medical supplies to Rwandan citizens in remote areas in minutes. Ever since 2016, Zipline has refined this drone delivery system and the Rwandan government has expanded it across the country. Currently, Zipline has made over 13,000 deliveries outside Rwanda’s capital, Kigali. A third of these deliveries have been in emergencies in which someone’s life was on the line.

Zipline in Ghana

The President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, launched the world’s largest medical drone delivery service during an inaugural ceremony in the city of Omenako, which is also one of the four Zipline drone distribution centers in Ghana. This drone delivery service in Ghana operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Each center is equipped with 30 drones and delivers to 2,500 facilities, serving 12 million people across the country. Some of the treatments that Zipline provides to Ghanaians in remote areas are vaccines for polio, tetanus and diptheria, and the World Health Organization’s Expanded Project on Immunization provides these. Health workers can place an order by text message and they can receive delivery of these and other treatments by parachute within 30 minutes.

The drone network will integrate into Ghana’s national health care supply chain. The plan is to prevent vaccine stockouts in health facilities and during national immunization campaigns. Zipline will manage the logistics of this network through its hardware and software systems in each of the four distribution centers, and it will make deliveries to hospitals and health clinics. In collaboration with Zipline and in consultation with Gavi, UPS will provide consultancy services and technical guidance when necessary.

Looking Ahead

Many expect that the commercial partnerships Zipline has with Ghana and Rwanda will save tens of thousands of lives over the next several years. Ghana will be the base for training future flight operators who will join Zipline as it expands its operations to countries beyond Ghana and Rwanda. Officials from Senegal and Nigeria plan to launch a similar service in their own countries. Throughout this year, Zipline is working hard to expand its drone delivery service to developed and developing countries across Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Americas. Zipline’s drone delivery service in Ghana is another innovative step the world is making to liberate men, women and children from the effects of poverty throughout the world.

– Jacob Stubbs
Photo: Wikipedia

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10 Facts About Life Expectancy in North Korea

Life Expectancy in North Korea

North Korea formed in 1948. With Japan’s surrender in World War II in 1945, the nation divided in two, with the Soviet Union occupying the north and the United States occupying the south. Efforts at reuniting the nation in 1948 failed, resulting in the formation of two distinct governments: the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in the north and the Republic of Korea in the south. Soon after the advent of the nation, Kim Il-sung seized control of the northern government and his family has remained in control for three generations. This rule has had a significant impact on life expectancy in North Korea.

The nations have since grown farther apart, culturally and politically. Though South Korea has improved vastly, North Korea remains elusive with minimal information publicized by an oppressive government. As international policy with North Korea enters a new era, the country comes further and further into the light. Even knowing 10 facts of life expectancy in North Korea may provide insight into the quality and direction of life in the nation.

10 Facts About Life Expectancy in Korea

  1. The life expectancy of North Koreans is 71 years. As a result, North Korea has the 157th longest life expectancy of the 224 nations in the CIA Factbook. The average for men is 67.2 years and 75 years for women. Life expectancy had been gradually rising since the country’s formation until the 1990s when it faced a sharp downturn due to a severe famine. The country’s life expectancy began to improve later in the decade and has since slowly continued to rise.
  2. North Koreans live shorter lives than South Koreans. South Korea has a life expectancy of 82.5 years, standing at 11th longest in the world. Both countries’ expectancies grew at similar rates in the late 1970s to early 80s with the North Korean growth rate slowing before and after due to food shortages. Food shortages continue to be a bane on North Korean health. High infant death rates in North Korea further causes the gap between South and North Korean life expectancy. North Korea suffers an infant mortality rate of 21.4 deaths per thousand births. South Korea’s birth rate averages three deaths per thousand. The South Korean National Statistical Office predicts that North Korea’s infant mortality rate will drop to 7.1 in 40 years.
  3. Forty percent of the 24 million in Korea live in poverty. The average GDP per capita is $1,700, leaving North Korean citizens standing at 214th wealthiest in the world. These civilians have severely restricted access to food and heating, leaving their health at risk. Many use wood fire to heat their homes or live without flushing toilets.
  4. North Korea does not guarantee health. Though North Korea claims to offer free health care, many die due to an inability to pay medical expenses, as patients must pay for their own heating, food and medicine. Though there are a greater number of doctors in North Korea than South Korea, they do not receive payment. Due to food insecurity, digestive issues and anemia are rampant across the country. Additionally, sufferers often cannot obtain the necessary treatment since underfunded hospitals have to ration or reuse medicine.
  5. North Korea suffers regular blackouts. Though coal experts largely support the country’s economy, North Korean power is far from reliable. Hospitals suffer from regular blackouts and loss of heat, limiting working hours to daylight and making for poor recovery conditions.
  6. North Korea has been fighting a tuberculosis epidemic for decades. Medical professionals diagnose 82,000 new tuberculosis cases per year and 15,000 people die from it. While the country had an anti-TB campaign launched in the 1970s, it lost traction with the 1990s famine. The Eugene Bell Foundation has been providing large-scale multi-drug resistant TB treatment throughout North Korea, curing over 70 percent of those it offers treatment to, compared to the world treatment success rate of 50 percent.
  7. North Korea suffers from severe food shortages. This fact about life expectancy in North Korea may be the most defining. On average, North Koreans consume only 2,094 kilocalories per day, well below the Food and Agriculture Organization’s recommended 2,500 kilocalories and the world’s average of 2,870 kilocalories. Meat is a luxury for most of the population, who subsist on kimchi—a fermented lettuce dish—corn, rice and porridge. In 2015, Ghulam Isaczai, the U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for North Korea, said that two million children, pregnant women and elderly North Koreans suffered from malnourishment.
  8. The North Korean government maintains one of the largest militaries in the world. North Korea has the 52nd largest population and fourth-largest national military in the world. The country spends one-fourth of its $40 billion GDP on its military. Men and women must serve in the military after turning seventeen, with a 10-year minimum for men. During this service, soldiers maintain exhaustive conditions, serving 15-hour days with only 750-800 grams of food.
  9. The North Korean government expresses a desire to improve its quality of life. In 2016, the nation launched a five-year plan to promote growth across all sectors of the nation. North Korea has passed several pieces of human rights legislation, such as the Convention on the Rights of a Child—which eliminates the worst of child labor, among other protections—and has permitted for U.N. supervisors to enter the country. However, the government does not fully oblige to promises made in these treaties.
  10. North Korea continues to be a focus of international rights policy. The Human Rights Council has been in unanimous agreement that North Korea must cease its human rights offenses. In addition to the Convention on the Rights of a Child, North Korea recently passed four other human rights bills to protect women and the disabled, two groups especially affected by North Korean living conditions. These bills will also focus on protecting general citizen rights. While no one can make a clear quantification of progress, as North Korea has not released a state report, Yoon Yoo-sang of South Korea’s Database Centre for North Korean Human Rights says that they have seen improvements in health care and food supply in the last two decades.

The 10 facts about life expectancy in North Korea are distressing, but not hopeless. North Korean life expectancy falls short for a vast array of causes such as natural causes, famine and insufficient medical program funding. Still, life expectancy rises. People should not ignore the gains by the populace—instead, these accomplishments may provide a glimmer of insight to the people behind the heavy veil of government.

– Katie Hwang
Photo: Flickr

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How Freeset is Setting Women Free in India

Freeset

At the age of 13, Kondola became the tenth wife to an older man and a servant in her in-laws’ house. Shortly after, she was tricked, sold and forced into prostitution in Sonagachi, Kolkata. She was forced to work in order to send money back to her family, who lived in Murshidabad, a high-risk district of West Bengal for human trafficking. Her future looked incredibly bleak. That was until she started a conversation with Annie and Kerry Hilton on the street. Along with twenty other brave women, she took the step to leave the sex trade business that she was unjustly forced into and began a sewing job with Freeset.

How Did This Organization Begin?

In 1999, Kerry and Annie Hilton left New Zealand and moved to Kolkata, signing for an apartment in the middle of the day. To their surprise, by nightfall, they discovered they had moved into one of Asia’s largest red-light areas, Sonagachi, and their neighbors were women who were forced into prostitution. They began building relationships with the women around them, including Mina, a woman who shared a similar past to many others, was advocating for new employment opportunities to help. Head of In-Country Communications, Sophie Bond, told The Borgen Project, despite the fact that “the Hiltons had no experience in manufacturing or business”, they were determined to be compassionate and trustworthy employers who could offer training and a secure job to these women, “to bring real change and freedom”.

Human Trafficking in India

Human trafficking in India is still a prevalent issue that the government must tackle. Two-thirds of the population live in poverty, with 68.8 percent living on less than two dollars per day. A small percentage of the population has benefited from the recent economic boom, in which 133 million Indians rose out of poverty between 1994 and 2012, yet there has been a steady increase in trafficking and violence, with almost 20,000 women and children trafficked in 2016. Victims usually belong to poor families in rural areas, with 70 percent of trafficking victims being members of the Dalit class of the caste system, among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. Members are prone to vulnerabilities and the pressures of survival make them easy targets to trick with false promises of repaid debts and money for their families. Women are the most vulnerable as social pressures have confined them to the domestic sphere, resulting in having a lack of education and literacy. They are also prevented from any justice or equality, further subjecting them to human rights abuses.

Freeset Today

Today, Freeset makes about 50,000 t-shirts and 240,000 bags per year. All staff members earn wages, with entry-level staff earning slightly more than the average garment maker in West Bengal. The designs are made by the women themselves, as well as by those who have volunteered at the organization. The organization typically sells in bulk orders to larger businesses looking to add their own logos to the merchandise. Bond shared that currently, about 200 women are employed and 30 men. In most cases, each woman supports at least three other family members and share eerily similar, yet simultaneously unique stories of being forced into prostitution by trafficking and poverty.

Freeset Offers Counseling

Tamar, an organization funded by the Freeset Trust, is a means of holistic care in each community. Bond told The Borgen Project, “Tamar is there to help with life skills and supporting women in their new path”. Several of the Tamar staff members are trained in Trauma-informed care, which is a huge part of the lives of the women working at Freeset. “For many of them, traumatic experiences–in the sex trade, as victims of trafficking, in domestic violence–have left deep mental and emotional (not to mention physical) scars. Counselling can help a woman to understand her own behaviors and reactions, as a result of the trauma she has experienced, and give her the tools to integrate into the workplace, and ‘normal’ society”. Additionally, as of 2016, Freeset has been awarded Fair Trade Guaranteed status by the World Fair Trade Organization (WTFO).

What is the World Trade Organization?

Home of Fair Trade Enterprises, this organization recognizes those who are empowering their staff to alleviate poverty. The goal of the WTFO is to transform communities by empowering women, practicing sustainable methods, and applying a community concept to trade those who are typically exploited by larger corporations.

What is Fair Trade?

Fair Trade has become an increasingly integral part of poverty alleviation, as it now impacts about one million livelihoods, with 74 percent of those being women. In fact, 54 percent of senior roles in fair trade organizations are held by women. Fair Trade policies aim to help empower people to combat poverty, strengthen, and take control of their own lives.

What Is The Government Doing To Help?

In India today, women constitute about 14 percent of the total entrepreneurship. However, the lack of equal access to education, employment, labor, and sexual violence hinders further advancements. The government has struggled to combat the issue of human trafficking, as it has been so widespread. Currently, it is looking toward crime prevention and harsher penalties for child prostitution and forced marriage, as well as improvements to protect victims. However, India’s vast landscape and corruption of officials still pose as obstacles that the government must overcome to further the progress throughout the country.

Check this out to see how you can get involved with Freeset: https://freesetglobal.com/volunteer/

– Adya Khosla
Photo: Flickr

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Three Innovations Helping Nepal Escape Poverty

Nepal escape poverty

It is common for countries around the world to experience rapid growth instead of modest poverty reduction, as income is increasingly concentrated in the hands of the wealthy. Nepal, however, leans toward the opposite. The country has reduced the poverty rate by half in just seven years and witnessed an equally significant decline in income inequality. Yet, Nepal remains one of the poorest and slowest-growing economies in Asia. Nonetheless, a few groundbreaking innovations are helping Nepal escape poverty.

Even without poverty as a factor, Nepal faces challenging obstacles to overcome. Since Nepal is a landlocked country it creates a natural barrier to its development. Nepal’s history of extractive political regimes left Nepal with extremely low levels of physical and human capital and illiteracy rates of 90 percent in 1951. A propensity for natural disasters also contributes to continuous setbacks.

Getting to the root of poverty requires solving many of these additional issues along the way. Poverty isn’t just inadequate access to income. It manifests itself in health services and education, often allowing sexism and racism to flourish. In spite of that, numerous solutions are being drafted every day with the world’s poor in mind. Here are three innovations helping Nepal escape poverty:

Suaahara Nutrition Project

Suaahara translates to “good nutrition,” and is a comprehensive nutrition program that teaches skills for nutrient-rich backyard vegetable farming, raising poultry, improving sanitation and hygiene, and controlling pests through demonstration farms and new mothers’ discussion groups.

Though about two-thirds of Nepalese workers worked in agriculture in recent years, the country’s agricultural sector has suffered dramatic losses since a devastating earthquake in 2015. Against a backdrop of food price volatility, the percent of households relying on food assistance increased from less than one-tenth of a percent before the earthquake to 35 percent after. Suaahara will ensure the health of future generations and guarantee budgets prioritize not just the amount of food people eat, but also the nutritional quality.

The Rani Jamara Kulariya Irrigation Project

Before 2012, Nepal’s rural population was primarily made up of smallholder farmers whose level of income was low by international standards. Farmers often experienced rainfalls and droughts that threatened their crop yields. Before project implementation, the Rani Jamara Kulariya Irrigation Scheme regularly suffered from either a shortage of water or severe flood damage. Furthermore, the government was unable to manage the water equitability which hindered the water distribution. The Rani Jamara Kulariya Irrigation Project put an emphasis on providing more efficient, reliable and flexible water services to farmers and households to mitigate agricultural losses due to water hazards and improve economic gains.

Modernizing the irrigation scheme allowed it to be resilient to water-induced hazards, proven after torrential rain in August of 2017. The project’s inclusive approach increased the number of women working in the Water User Association from 19 percent to 33 percent between 2012 and 2017. Moreover, about 40 percent of the command area saw an increase in irrigated crop yields; 117 kilometers of village roads were upgraded to gravel roads, bridges and culverts, and nearly 16,000 water users have benefitted from this project so far.

Promotion of Early Grade Reading

Nepal has made remarkable progress in expanding learning opportunities for children and adults. Since 1990, primary school enrollment rates have increased from 64 to 96 percent. However, the quality of education remains low and the overall literacy rate is around 65 percent.

A USAID-supported early grade reading assessment in 2014 showed that 19 percent of third-graders could not read a single word of Nepali. Together with the Ministry of Education, USAID plans to help one million young children acquire strong reading skills in grades one to three across 16 districts of Nepal.

Beyond just improving reading and literacy skills, these focused education efforts are strengthening curriculum and training teachers, school committee members, parents and technical support staff across the country. Just a 10 percent increase in basic literacy skills can boost a country’s economic growth by 0.3 percent and create a foundation for future learning.

These kinds of innovations are crucial in helping bend the curve toward increased child survival, lower malnutrition, greater literacy skills, and ultimately, the end of extreme poverty. Solutions like these will help Nepal escape poverty, drive broader development progress and elevate transformative efforts toward change.

– GiGi Hogan
Photo: Flickr

 

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Naturalin: A Novel Solution for Diabetes and Obesity

solution to diabetes and obesity
Currently, almost 80 percent of diabetes deaths occur in low or middle-income countries. Halo Life Sciences, a company based in Austin, Texas, plans to change that. It has developed a product that it calls Naturalin, a naturally occurring phytonutrient that can go into snack foods, dairy, protein products, beverages and more. The addition of Naturalin makes these products far more nutritious. Naturalin has a massive potential to enact positive change in the food industry in a number of nations around the world as a solution for diabetes and obesity.

Naturalin Basics

Entrepreneur Michael Reyes originally developed Naturalin as a response to the growing number of obese, diabetic and pre-diabetic individuals in developing countries. Island nations such as the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Nauru have the highest rates of diabetes in the world. Individuals who are diabetic often contract the disease because their bodies are insulin resistant. Many different things can cause insulin resistance, but it is closely associated with excess weight and body fat. This, in turn, places an undue burden on both these individuals and the health care providers in these countries, as individuals with diabetes often require specific medications, such as short and long-acting insulin, amylinomimetic drugs, alpha-glucosidase inhibitors and DPP-4. Naturalin can help reduce this burden by fortifying common foods such as rice and flour. In addition to its nutritional benefits, Naturalin is a sustainable product and is a renewable resource, ensuring that it will be available for usage by future generations.

Plans for Expansion

Halo Life Sciences is currently in the process of getting Naturalin into markets around the world, including in Brazil, India, China and Israel. The company has partnered with a number of individuals and corporations in these countries. It is also planning to start developing its own CPG’s (consumer packaged goods) that will already have Naturalin in them. These recent developments will likely result in Halo Life Sciences receiving investments from those who see Naturalin’s potential as a solution for diabetes and obesity. Such investments will make the process of expanding into global markets much easier.

Potential Roadblocks

While Naturalin has the potential to enact real global change, it does face some potential roadblocks in the implementation process. For one, a strong marketing campaign must back the product, so that people know about its benefits. Halo Life Sciences has already done some work on this end, as it has invested heavily in scientific research; researches at the University of Texas-Austin validated Naturalin as safe, functional and effective when they tested it. However, it must continue to work on getting its message out to people around the globe. The company must also navigate the oftentimes tricky process of delivering its product into rural communities. If Naturalin can deal with these two potential roadblocks, it will be able to thrive as a product in countless nations around the world.

Changing the World

Naturalin has the capacity to change the world for the better by being a solution for diabetes and obesity. It provides individuals with a quick and easy way to consume more nutritious food, and upon implementation, will almost certainly reduce the total number of individuals suffering from diabetes and obesity worldwide. It is, without a doubt, a very promising solution to one of the most pressing issues facing the modern world.

– Kiran Matthias
Photo: Pixabay

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Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Montserrat

Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Montserrat

Montserrat is located in the Lesser Antilles chain and is a British owned island filled with lush green fields and mountainous landscapes. However, due to the island’s location, living conditions can be hectic. Here are the top 10 facts about living conditions in Montserrat.

Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Montserrat

  1. Natural Disasters: Before 1995, the island was home to over 11,000 people. However, after the eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano, destruction ensued. The volcano killed dozens and 7,000 people evacuated the island, leaving nearly half the island desecrated and abandoned. Since the volcanoes, however, more than 1,000 people have moved back to Montserrat, raising the population to 5,215. The impact of this volcano has proven to be detrimental to Montserrat’s economy. Montserrat had to close airports and seaports which made the country lose tourist dollars. The agricultural district continues to underperform due to the lack of suitable land and the destruction of crops. The hurricane season lasts between June and November, and extremely stormy weather does occur outside this period. Natural disasters have put The population of Montserrat under great strain and it has gotten so bad that now only a third of the island is inhabitable.
  2. Language and Culture: The dominant language in Montserrat is English and the people of Montserrat use other variations of English such as Creole English and Ebonics as well. The culture is a mixture of African, British and Irish culture although some North American culture has seeped into the island recently. The population consists of mostly those of African descent with small amounts of Europeans.
  3. Economics: Tourism and agriculture were previously the most prominent economic activities. However, due to the devastation of the volcanoes in the 1990s, people had to abandon Plymouth, which was the main commercial center. Since then, Montserrat has relied heavily on British and Canadian aid to rebuild infrastructure and provide services such as quarrying and mining. The common currency used is provided by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (East Carribean dollar). The eruption has damaged a major chunk of the agricultural land but farmers are still able to produce potatoes, onions and other vegetables, as well as sell into the domestic market.  According to the 2012 Country Poverty Assessment, 36 percent of the population is considered poor with children as young as 15 or even younger experiencing the highest poverty rate and accounting for a third of the poor population.
  4. Government: Montserrat is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy. A governor elected by the monarch represents the British crown. The person in charge of the government itself is the Premier who the governor chooses. This makes Montserrat self-governing territory of the U.K. Montserrat introduced universal suffrage in 1951, meaning that anyone 18 or above can vote. Furthermore, elections for the Legislative Assembly occur every five years. A large number of the population (71.06 percent) in Montserrat is registered to vote.
  5. Education: One of the most interesting of the top 10 facts about living conditions in Montserrat is its education status. Despite the volcanic devastation, out of the 5,215 citizens ages 10 to 70, 96.5 percent are literate. Before the volcano, Montserrat spent 20 percent of its budget on education but now only allocates eight percent of its budget to education. Primary school enrollment is nearly 100 percent and lasts from ages five to 12.  Secondary lasts from ages 12 to 16 and Tertiary lasts from ages 17 to 21. As of 2017, no student in Montserrat has had to repeat coursework. Public and private schools are available for enrollment. According to UNICEF, 55 percent of students enrolled in secondary schools in Montserrat do not feel safe. There is a heavy prevalence of threats, bullying and fights mostly among men and less against women. The Montserrat Technical College, Montserrat College of Art, and the University of the West Indies offers technical and vocational education for those who graduate from secondary school. The island itself is unfortunately too poor to afford its own university but it offers many opportunities to study abroad in the U.S., Canada, or the U.K. Most students will study abroad and then seldom move back home.
  6. Nutrition: According to the Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute’s 2010 survey, among children aged zero to five years old, 20.8 percent of boys and 17.4 percent of girls were at high risk of being overweight, 8.3 percent of boys and 7.2 percent of girls were actually overweight and 5.6 percent of boys and 2.9 percent of girls were obese. Between 2009 and 2010, there were 36 anemia related hospitalizations affecting citizens between age groups of 15-75 and older.
  7. Health: Despite the fact that Montserrat has an effective primary health care system, basic secondary care services are only available at one hospital and there are no tertiary facilities available.  Due to this, Montserrat has promised to give its residents access to secondary and tertiary health care at affordable prices by 2050. Meanwhile, citizens who need tertiary health care can attend off-island centers for care. The number of deaths per year has averaged 44 between 2010 and 2015. In 2015, Montserrat suffered 49 deaths and 86 percent were persons aged 60 and over. The leading causes involved the circulatory system, endocrine and neoplasm diseases. Diabetes mellitus and heart diseases are also leading specific causes.
  8. Unemployment: According to the 2019 Labor Force Census conducted by the Montserrat government, 176 citizens in Montserrat are unemployed. This puts the unemployment rate at 6.5 percent. Among the male population, around 7.2 percent are unemployed and more than five percent of females are unemployed. The youth unemployment rate (ages 15 to 24) is at 11.8 percent.
  9. Access to Services: A large amount of the Montserrat population (99 percent) has access to healthy, clean drinking water and 82.9 percent have access to proper sanitation facilities. Hepatitis A and Typhoid can be contracted through contaminated water and are a risk in Montserrat.
  10. Life Expectancy: The total life expectancy in Montserrat is 74.8 years (73.5 years for women and 76.1 years for men). Some of the population (10.2 percent) suffers from diabetes mellitus and 64 percent of the population consumes alcohol.

Solutions

Montserrat received $15.66 million under the 10th EDF Montserrat as general budget support for the 12-year Sustainable Development Plan. This was to help improve its economy. In January 2013, the EU also gave Montserrat a $55.2 million aid package to boost economic recovery with a specific focus on public finance, reform and economic management.

After the volcanoes that devastated the land, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency along with other organizations worked together to provide relief for all citizens affected by the volcanoes. It helped people evacuate from active volcano areas and began housing 200 people in an unfinished multi-purpose center and providing food to them and other citizens of need.

The top 10 facts about Montserrat offer awareness to a country that is going through major repairs. It is no secret that after the destruction of the various volcanic eruptions that took place in the 1990s, Montserrat has undergone a major transformation because of this. Life for the Montserratians has not gotten any easier but with major aid from Britain and Canada, the government is able to put reforms in place and bring the economy back to what it once was without its former capital. While Montserrat has a long way to go, the island will become stronger and better than what it once was with the changes in place. 

– Carrington Peavy
Photo: Flickr

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New HIV Drug Implemented In Kenya

HIV Drug Implemented in Kenya
In 2017, there were approximately 36.9 million people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide. Additionally, 6.1 million of those with HIV were located in western and central Africa. Kenya, a country in eastern Africa, had approximately 1.5 million people living with HIV/AIDs in 2017. That same year, an HIV drug implemented in Kenya started to successfully combat this deadly immune system virus. Unitaid and the Kenyan government simultaneously introduced it to the country.

Dolutegravir and Antiretroviral Therapy

The new HIV/AIDS drug, Dolutegravir or DTG, received approval in 2014 and is the most recent and effective antiretroviral drug used in the treatment against HIV/AIDs. DTG has been the drug of choice in high-income countries for its antiresistance properties, few side effects and easy one pill a day treatment. In 2015, the World Health Organization recommended this drug replace other first-line regimens for adults and adolescents. Recently this drug was not available in low-income countries, like Kenya, because of its high cost.

In 2018, only 62 percent of people with HIV/AIDs had access to antiretroviral therapy, which was an increase from the previous year. This corresponds to the 23.3 million people who were able to receive treatment, however, approximately 14.6 million people could not access treatment. In Kenya, 75 percent of adults with HIV/AIDs received treatment in 2018, which increased from 2016, when only 64 percent of people received treatment. One reason for the increase in HIV/AIDs testing is the partnerships between the government of Kenya and Unitaid that began in 2017 which introduced the generic brand of DTG.

Now, the generic brand of this life-saving drug has been available to people in Kenya since early 2018. This new HIV drug implemented in Kenya has the potential to make life-saving drugs more accessible to those who would normally not be able to afford it. In 2017, a number of nonprofits including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Unitaid, USAID, PEPFAR and others agreed to a pricing agreement to help make the drug more affordable in developing countries. This pricing agreement would allow public sector purchases at $75 per person, per year.

Side Effects of Other Drugs

Before the introduction of DTG, the first-line drug in Kenya was Efavirenz, an antiretroviral medication with side effects for some users including nausea, dizziness, rash and headaches. When the pricing agreement first emerged, the Kenyan Ministry of Health decided that the first round of DTG it distributed would go to 27,000 people who suffered the negative side effects from efavirenz. Then, the Ministry of Health assigned various other health clinics to receive the drug until it could become available to the entire country.

The number of new HIV/AIDs diagnoses in Kenya has halved over the last decade to approximately 80,000 people a year. The new HIV drug implemented in Kenya will only help decrease the number of people suffering from HIV/AIDs. Comprehensive sex education, HIV/AIDs testing centers and the continuation of drug pricing agreements will help alleviate the prevalence of HIV in developing countries, like Kenya.

– Hayley Jellison
Photo: Flickr

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10 Facts About Life Expectancy in Nepal

Life Expectancy in Nepal

Nestled in the heart of the Himalayan mountains, Nepal has long been praised for its beauty and local culture. As the country continues to develop, there have been trends and statistics that show the true physical well-being of the population as a whole, particularly regarding the life expectancy in Nepal. As with all countries, there are many pieces that come into play when determining a country’s life expectancy, and they vary wildly depending on the region. Here we will take a look at 10 facts about life expectancy in Nepal and the contributing factors that affect those numbers.

10 Facts About Life Expectancy in Nepal

  1. Twenty-five percent of the population in Nepal lives below the poverty line. There are many things that influence life expectancy rates, and many of those are attributed to financial insecurity. With one-quarter of Nepal’s population living in classified poverty, they are unable to afford the most basic of healthcare and even food, leading to shorter and more difficult lives.
  2. Nepal has high infant mortality rates. In Nepal, 35 out of every 1,000 children die in infancy. Due to a lack of proper facilities and practitioners qualified for natal and infant care, over three percent of children die before they reach the age of five.
  3. Almost 1,000,000 Nepali people are unemployed. Unemployment can affect many people in many ways; without access to jobs and the consequent benefits, it can make life a struggle similar to that of those living in poverty.
  4. Malnourishment rates are high. Approximately 5 million Nepali children are malnourished. Studies conducted within the last decade have shown that nutrition directly correlates to certain health conditions, and that malnourishment is linked with lower life expectancy.
  5. Nepal is prone to natural disasters. Despite being in one of the most scenic parts of the world, Nepal’s mountain location in the heart of the Himalayas poses risk to the population. Its location leaves the Nepali people vulnerable to a host of different natural disasters, including floods, landslides and earthquakes. These natural disasters are another factor to take into account when calculating life expectancy.
  6. Regardless of negative factors, life expectancy numbers in Nepal are rising. Data obtained from British medical journal Lancet shows recent findings of life expectancy increasing among the Nepali population. Going up over 12 years within two decades, the numbers are rising and show no signs of stopping. This noticeable increase has several causes such as improvements in health care, job access rates and better living conditions.
  7. Nepal’s public health care system is improving. Another reason for rising life expectancy rates in Nepal is the continuing development of their public health care system. The Nepal government has committed to enacting a universal health coverage plan and is a crucial factor in raising life expectancy. While the government and donor-funded health care plan is still in the early stages, once fully developed it will open up a world of benefits to those in need, particularly affecting people with chronic illnesses and diseases and allowing them to receive better care.
  8. Maternal mortality rates are lowering. Going hand-in-hand with Nepal’s expanding health care system, studies are showing that maternal mortality rates are dropping. Within 25 years, the country has reduced the national maternal mortality rate drastically, going from 901 deaths per 100,000 births down to 258. That seventy-one percent decrease is largely due to more equipped facilities and trained medical personnel, which in turn minimizes the number of unsupervised home births.
  9. Educational systems are improving. According to the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the enrollment rate in primary schools has risen to 97 percent over the last 20 years. These numbers show the slow elevation of educational access in Nepal, but there is still a long way to go. UNICEF has partnered with the country’s government to initiate a four-year improvement plan in hopes of providing even higher quality education to more students across the country. Increasing these educational opportunities allow for jobs and other options otherwise inaccessible, leading to higher quality and longer lives.
  10. Nepal is beginning to manage the future. Ensuring that the elderly citizens of Nepal are being well taken care of is essential for a thriving population and will increase life expectancy. By spending more of the budget on pension and medical care for the elderly, Nepal has displayed a commitment to safeguarding the wellbeing of future generations.

In a recent study of more than 188 countries, Nepal was in the top 10 countries to have significantly improved life expectancy rates. The many factors that are consistently being improved upon—such as health care, job access, educational opportunities and positive lifestyle influences—are proving their worth. Despite facing many challenges to still overcome, Nepal is making many improvements that will ensure longer, healthier lives for the Nepali people.

– Olivia Bendle
Photo: Pixabay

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10 Facts About Life Expectancy in Kenya

10 Facts About Life Expectancy in KenyaLocated on the mid-eastern coast of Africa, the nation of Kenya is home to more than 50 million people. Despite the country’s strong tourism industry, which centers around internationally renowned landmarks such as the Musai Mara National Reserve, it still struggles with issues pertaining to extreme poverty.

One of the main effects resulting from this poverty is a very low life expectancy rate. The inverse relationship between wealth and life expectancy is largely due to the nature of poverty. For instance, the inability to see a doctor, access contraception, buy medicine, etc. all compound the chances of early mortality. Poverty has impacts beyond general health too, like exposing people dis-proportionally to unsafe living conditions.

This informs the reality in Kenya, where people over the age of 65 make up only 2.7 percent of the population, and the average life expectancy is only 59 years. Here are 10 facts about life expectancy in Kenya to help explain why that number is so low.

10 Facts About Life Expectancy in Kenya

  1. High poverty rates: More than 50 percent of people live below the poverty line. In addition, in Kenya, 40 percent of people live on less than two dollars a day.
  2. High child mortality rates: The under 5 mortality rate in Kenya lands at 85 deaths per 1,000 births. This number is dramatically higher than the global average of 40. This is a huge issue, as the World Bank claims the number one way to increase life expectancy is to reduce child mortality.
  3. Number of physicians: There is one doctor for every 10,000 people in Kenya. In addition, the country’s health care system has historically been dysfunctional. This manifested into a 100-day strike in 2017 by doctors over poor working conditions and pay. It was followed, late that year, by a nurse’s strike for similar reasons. This has led to overloaded and under-resourced facilities, which dis-incentivizes people to go into the field.
  4. Lack of admittance to public hospitals: Because of the disorganization in the public health system, almost no patients get admitted into Kenya’s public health facilities. This creates an especially tremendous impact on the maternal mortality rate, as women do not have access to proper birthing spaces. This is one unfortunate truth in the 10 facts about life expectancy in Kenya.
  5. Lack of medical student retention: The presence of a broken health care system establishes a negative image of the medical field in Kenya. Therefore, 40 percent of Kenyans who graduate with medical degrees choose to find work elsewhere. This furthers the national shortage, preventing millions of people from having access to medical needs.
  6. Lack of access to clean water: While millions of people in first world countries do not stop to think about how much water they use on a daily basis, around 60 percent of Kenyans do not have access to clean water. Thus, there is an extremely high nationwide risk of contracted water-borne diseases such as malaria, cholera and typhoid fever.
  7. No universal health care system: Kenya’s government does not offer a universal health care system, so millions of people are uninsured. On account of this, many avoid clinical care–which is oftentimes necessary. Under this system, small treatable issues tend to develop into potentially fatal diseases.
  8. Poorly kept health facilities: Since the government lacks adequate funding to keep the hospitals clean and sanitary, many fall into disrepair. Additionally, the lack of resources creates a shortage of medical equipment and a poorly operated management system.
  9. Kenya Quality Model for Health: In 2018, Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development partnered with the group Amref Health Africa to create a set of national health standards called the Kenya Quality Model for Health. Currently, workers are being trained in KQMH nationwide in over 47 facilities, while they receive monthly visits from Amref trainers. This program will hopefully improve the quality of care in Kenya and in turn life expectancy.
  10. Expansive treatment measures are being implemented: The lack of health care access mainly centers around rural western Kenya, where transportation is frequently an issue. In 2018, the Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare (AMPATH) joined with the Abbott Fund to help solve this problem. The partnership has trained more than 1,000 workers to deliver doses of insulin to people with diabetes mainly in western Kenya. They have also invested $5 million to screen people for diabetes and provide them with the proper medical instruments. This unique approach to health care will hopefully expand to other treatments, decreasing the number of people who do not receive care.

– Liam Manion
Photo: Flickr