The impact of health financing and CO2 emission on health outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa: A cross-country analysis

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the impact of economic freedom on four key health indicators (namely, life expectancy, infant mortality rate, under-five mortality rate and neonatal mortality rate) by using a panel dataset of 34 sub-Saharan African countries from 2005 to 2016.Design/methodology/approachThe study obtains data from the World Development Indicators (WDI) of the World Bank and the Fraser Institute. It uses fixed effects regression to estimate the effect of economic freedom on health outcomes and attempts to resolve the endogeneity problems by using two-stage least squares regression (2SLS).FindingsThe results indicate a favourable impact of economic freedom on health outcomes. That is, higher levels of economic freedom reduce mortality rates and increase life expectancy in sub-Saharan Africa. All areas of economic freedom, except government size, have a significant and positive effect on health outcomes.Research limitations/implicationsThis study analyses the effect of economic freedom on health at a broad level. Country-specific studies at a disaggregated level may provide additional information about the impact of economic freedom on health outcomes. Also, this study does not control for some important variables such as education, income inequality and foreign aid due to data constraints.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that sub-Saharan African countries should focus on enhancing the quality of economic institutions to improve their health outcomes. This may include policy reforms that support a robust legal system, protect property rights, promote free trade and stabilise the macroeconomic environment. In addition, policies that raise urbanisation, increase immunisation and lower the incidence of HIV are likely to produce a substantial improvement in health outcomes.Originality/valueExtant economic freedom-health literature does not focus on endogeneity problems. This study uses instrumental variables regression to deal with endogeneity. Also, this is one of the first attempts to empirically investigate the relationship between economic freedom and health in the case of sub-Saharan Africa.

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The Impact of Climate Variability and Change on Food Security in Sub-Saharan Africa: Perspective from Panel Data Analysis

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su14020759 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 14 (2) ◽

pp. 759

Author(s):

Raïfatou Affoh ◽

Haixia Zheng ◽

Kokou Dangui ◽

Badoubatoba Mathieu Dissani

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Least Squares ◽

Food Availability ◽

Co2 Emission ◽

Ordinary Least Squares ◽

Causal Link ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Food Utilization ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact

This study investigates the relationship between climate variables such as rainfall amount, temperature, and carbon dioxide (CO2) emission and the triple dimension of food security (availability, accessibility, and utilization) in a panel of 25 sub-Saharan African countries from 1985 to 2018. After testing for cross-sectional dependence, unit root and cointegration, the study estimated the pool mean group (PMG) panel autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL). The empirical outcome revealed that rainfall had a significantly positive effect on food availability, accessibility, and utilization in the long run. In contrast, temperature was harmful to food availability and accessibility and had no impact on food utilization. Lastly, CO2 emission positively impacted food availability and accessibility but did not affect food utilization. The study took a step further by integrating some additional variables and performed the panel fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) and dynamic ordinary least squares (DOLS) regression to ensure the robustness of the preceding PMG results. The control variables yielded meaningful results in most cases, so did the FMOLS and DOLS regression. The Granger causality test was conducted to determine the causal link, if any, among the variables. There was evidence of a short-run causal relationship between food availability and CO2 emission. Food accessibility exhibited a causal association with temperature, whereas food utilization was strongly connected with temperature. CO2 emission was linked to rainfall. Lastly, a bidirectional causal link was found between rainfall and temperature. Recommendations to the national, sub-regional, and regional policymakers are addressed and discussed.

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Impact of cash transfer programs on food security and nutrition in sub-Saharan Africa: A cross-country analysis

Global Food Security ◽

10.1016/j.gfs.2016.07.009 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 ◽

pp. 72-83 ◽

Cited By ~ 30

Author(s):

Smriti Tiwari ◽

Silvio Daidone ◽

Maria Angelita Ruvalcaba ◽

Ervin Prifti ◽

Sudhanshu Handa ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Cash Transfer ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Transfer Programs ◽

Country Analysis ◽

Cross Country ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Food Security And Nutrition

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Growth and Equity in Tertiary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa

International Journal of African Higher Education ◽

10.6017/ijahe.v1i1.5645 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 1 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Peter Darvas ◽

Sonali Ballal ◽

Kedebe Feda

Keyword(s):

Education System ◽

Tertiary Education ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Equitable Access ◽

African Countries ◽

Household Characteristics ◽

Country Level ◽

Country Analysis ◽

Cross Country ◽

Sub Saharan

This study represents a first report of a regional cross-country analysis of patterns in equity and growth in tertiary education in Sub-Saharan Africa. In it, we analyse country-level surveys and regional statistics to see how expansion affected equity, how equity is explained by household characteristics and other factors, and what the intrinsic characteristics of the tertiary education system are that influence equity. Data show that in many instances, Sub-Saharan African countries fall behind other regions in terms of equity; and whereas some policies, such as diversification and more equitable pre-tertiary education can help, more efforts and more effective policies need to be introduced to make the system more equitable. The report argues that growth itself will not necessarily lead to improved equity and more equitable access to tertiary education can help the sector in achieving its higher-level objectives, including its contribution to competitiveness and prosperity. Cette étude constitue le premier rapport d’une analyse de l’équité et de la croissance de l’enseignement supérieur en Afrique sub-saharienne. Nous analysons des enquêtes nationales et des statistiques régionales pour montrer la manière dont la croissance affecte l’équité, comment l’équité peut être expliquée par les caractéristiques des ménages ainsi que par d’autres facteurs et quels facteurs propres au système d’enseignement supérieur influencent l’équité. Les données montrent que, dans de nombreux cas, les pays d’Afrique sub-saharienne sont en retard par rapport à ceux d’autres régions en ce qui concerne l’équité. Tandis que certaines mesures politiques, comme diversifier l’enseignement supérieur ou rendre les enseignements primaire et secondaire plus équitables, peuvent aider, des efforts plus importants et des mesures politiques plus efficaces doivent être mis en place pour rendre le système plus équitable. Ce rapport soutient que la croissance ne conduira pas forcément à l’amélioration de l’équité et qu’un accès plus équitable à l’enseignement supérieur peut aider le secteur à atteindre ses objectifs les plus ambitieux, notamment contribuer à la compétitivité et la prospérité du pays et de la région.

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Nutritional Perspectives On Sickle Cell Disease In Africa: A Systematic Review

10.21203/rs.3.rs-20049/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Eunice Berko Nartey ◽

Jonathan Spector ◽

Seth Adu-Afarwuah ◽

Catherine L. Jones ◽

Alan A. Jackson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Sickle Cell Disease ◽

Nutritional Status ◽

Health Outcomes ◽

Sickle Cell ◽

Small Sample ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Cell Disease ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is an inherited blood disorder and mostly affects individuals living in sub-Saharan Africa. Whilst there is an established link between its pathophysiology and nutritional status, research in this area in Africa is limited and evidence-based nutritional guidelines lacking. This systematic review aimed to evaluate studies in sub-Saharan Africa focused on nutritional aspects of SCD, codify results, and highlight gaps in knowledge that could inform priority-setting for future research. Methods The study was conducted using the Preferred Reporting items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. We sought to include all studies involving original research of nutritional status of individuals (children and adults) with SCD in Africa. ‘Nutritional status’ was defined as topics related to dietary intake, measurements of growth or anthropometry, and nutritional-related biomarkers. Studies of anemia alone in non-SCD individuals were excluded as well as studies that assessed individuals with sickle cell trait (i.e., carriers). The databases used were Ovid Embase, Medline, Biosis and Web of Science. Studies conducted between 1995 and 2018 were included in the analyses. Results The search returned 366 articles from which 66 studies were included in the final analyses. Most investigations (70%) were conducted in Nigeria. Studies were categorized into one of three main categories: descriptive studies of anthropometric characteristics (47% of studies), descriptive studies of macro- or micronutrient levels (36% of studies), and interventional studies (14% of studies). There were fairly uniform findings that demonstrate that the growth of SCD patients in sub-Saharan Africa was impaired, especially in childhood and adolescence. Studies assessing macro- and micro-nutrients generally had small sample sizes and were exploratory in nature. Only two randomized, placebo-controlled trials were identified, which measured the impact of fatty acid supplementation and lime juice on health outcomes. Conclusions The findings of this review are consistent with data from other regional settings that describe a significant risk of malnutrition in individuals with SCD. There appears to be a substantial unmet need for clinical research to better understand the potential utility of nutritional-related interventions for patients with SCD in sub-Saharan Africa, to promote optimal growth and improve health outcomes.

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Mobile messaging support versus usual care for people with type 2 diabetes in sub-Saharan Africa: a protocol for a multicentre randomized controlled trial (StAR2D) (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.12377 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Andrew Farmer ◽

Kirsten Bobrow ◽

Natalie Leon ◽

Nicola Williams ◽

Enita Phiri ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Cost Effectiveness ◽

Health Outcomes ◽

Usual Care ◽

Text Messaging ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The Impact ◽

Sms Text Messaging

UNSTRUCTURED Background: Health outcomes for people treated for type 2 diabetes could be substantially improved in sub-Saharan Africa. Failure to take medicines regularly to treat diabetes has been identified as a major problem. Resources to identify and support patients who are not making best use of medicine in low and middle-income settings are scarce. Mobile phones are widely available in these settings including among people with diabetes, and linked technologies such as SMS-text messaging have shown promise in delivering low-cost interventions efficiently. However, evidence that these interventions will work when carried out at a larger scale, and of the extent to which they will improve health outcomes when added to usual care is limited. Methods: We will carry out a randomised clinical trial in two contrasting settings in sub-Saharan Africa, Cape Town in South Africa and Lilongwe in Malawi, to provide information about the impact of sending brief automated messages via SMS text-messaging. The messages will advise people about the benefits of their diabetes treatment and offer motivation and encouragement around lifestyle and use of medication. We will allocate patients using a randomly-generated assignment plan to receive either intervention messages, or an active control. We will follow up people for twelve months measuring important risk factors for poor health outcomes and complications in diabetes so we can estimate potential health benefits, including HbA1c as a marker for long-term blood glucose control and blood pressure control, We will record the costs of doing this, and estimate cost-effectiveness. We will also capture collection of medication and assess the reception of the intervention by participants and health care workers. Discussion: The knowledge gained will have wide application and advance the evidence base for effectiveness of mobile-phone based brief text-messaging on clinical outcomes and in large-scale, operational settings. It will provide evidence for cost-effectiveness that will further inform policy development and decision-making. We will work with a wide network that includes patients, clinicians, academics, industry, and policy makers to help us identify opportunities for informing people about the work and raise awareness of what is being developed and studied. Trial Registration: ISRCTN70768808 (Registered on 3 August 2015)

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