scholarly journals Trends, Determinants and Health Risks of Adolescent Fatherhood in Sub-Saharan Africa

1970 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmanuel O. Amoo ◽  
Angie Igbinoba ◽  
David Imhonopi ◽  
Olufunmilayo O. Banjo ◽  
Chukwuedozie K. Ajaero ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Risks ◽  
Sexual Behaviour ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Adolescent Male ◽  
Access To Higher Education ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Adolescent Fatherhood

BACKGROUND: This study examined the trends, determinants and health risks of adolescent fatherhood in three selected African countries where adolescent-girl pregnancy/motherhood are decried but with permissive male sexual latitude.METHODS: Adolescent male data were extracted from the malerecodedatasets of Demographic Health Survey (2000-2014) for Nigeria, Ethiopia and Zambia. The surveys were grouped into 3-Waves: (2000-2004); (2005-2008) and (2011-2014). The study employed descriptive and binary logistics that tested the log-odds of adolescent fatherhood with respect to selected sexual behaviour indices, and individual and shared demographic variables.RESULTS: The results revealed that the number of lifetimesexual-partners among the boys is ≥2. The likelihood of adolescent fatherhood is positively associated with increasing age at first cohabitation and multiple sexual partnerships (≥2) having OR=1.673 and OR=1.769 in 2005/2008 and 2011/2014 respectively. Adolescents who had attained tertiary education, and engaged in professional and skilled jobs were 0.313, 0.213 and 0.403 times (respectively) less likely to have ever-fathered a child. The positive association between rural place of residence and adolescent fatherhood in the past shifted to urban residents in 2011/2014.CONCLUSION: The study concludes that early sexual activities and cohabitation are common among male adolescents among the countries of study. The authors recommend discouragement of boy-girl cohabitation, increasing access to higher education and job opportunities in order to stem boy-fatherhood incidence in the study locations and, by extension, other countries in sub-Saharan Africa.KEYWORDS: Adolescent fatherhood, sexual behaviour, trends, determinants, health risks, lifetime-sexual-partners

scholarly journals Growth and Equity in Tertiary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa

2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
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.

scholarly journals Linking Water Access and Education in the Sustainable Development Goals in Sub-Saharan Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 50-58
Author(s):  
Le Roi Nso Fils
Keyword(s):  
Negative Impact ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Water Access ◽  
African Countries ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Government Effectiveness ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Generalized Moments

Despite the growing literature on water access, little is known about the effect of water access on education, particularly in sub-Saharan African countries. The aim of this paper is to fill this gap by assessing how water access affects education in 23 sub-Saharan African countries over the period 2000-2018. To carry out our investigation, we used the Generalized Moments Methods (GMM). The results show that there is a negative relationship between water access and education. Furthermore, parliament women and government effectiveness play an important role in mitigating the negative impact of water access on education. Finally, the positive association between water access and education in sub-Saharan Africa is conditioned by the achievement of a certain threshold of parliament women and government effectiveness.

scholarly journals Undernutrition, polygynous context and family structure: a multilevel analysis of cross-sectional surveys of 350 000 mother–child pairs from 32 countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (10) ◽  
pp. e002637
Author(s):  
Seun Stephen Anjorin ◽  
Olalekan A Uthman ◽  
Edward Kwabena Ameyaw ◽  
Bright Opoku Ahinkorah ◽  
Vijay Kumar Chattu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Contextual Factors ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Credible Interval ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Demographic And Health Surveys ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Growth Reference ◽  
Sub Saharan

BackgroundContextual factors, especially where people live, has been linked to various health outcomes, therefore, there is an increasing focus on its implication for policies and implementation of health interventions. Polygyny is a widespread practice in sub-Saharan Africa that also reflects socioeconomic and sociocultural features. This study investigated the association between polygynous context and risk of undernutrition.MethodsRecent Demographic and Health Surveys involving 350 000 mother–child pairs from 32 sub-Saharan African countries conducted between 2010 and 2018 as of March 2020, were analysed using relevant descriptive and 3-level multilevel logistic regression modelling. Undernutrition among under-5 was defined as underweight, stunting and wasting using the WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study. Odd Ratio (OR) at 95% credible interval was used to report the associations.ResultsThe prevalence of contextual polygyny varied widely across the 32 sub-Saharan African countries, the lowest (0%) found in one of the regions in South Africa and the highest (52%) in one of the regions in Uganda. Underweight, stunting and wasting were lowest in Uganda (3.5%, 9.3%–1.27%, respectively), stunting was highest in Mozambique (37.1%) while wasting was highest in Niger (7.7%). Furthermore, the results showed that the contextual prevalence of polygynous practice exacerbates the risk of underweight (1.003 (0.997–1.008)) and wasting (1.014 (1.007–1.021)) among under-5 children, even when gender inequality and sociodemographic indicators were adjusted for. Polygyny was negatively associated with stunting though not significant; multiple births had the strongest and positive association with the risk of undernutrition among under-5 children in sub-Saharan Africa.ConclusionsThis study further corroborates the strong influence of contextual factors on health outcomes—which is undernutrition in this study. In addition to specific interventions aimed at reducing the prevalence of undernutrition, broader strategies that will address contextual issues are required.

scholarly journals Sub-Sahara Africa’s Higher Education: Financing, Growth, and Em-ployment

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
Aloysius Ajab Amin ◽  
Augustin Ntembe
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Fixed Effect Model ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Access To Higher Education ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Education Enrollment ◽  
Higher Education Financing ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Sub Saharan

Although higher education plays a vital role in the socio-economic development of Sub-Saharan Africa, enrollment in universities in the region is unexpectedly low compared to other regions. However, Sub-Saharan African countries have made strides in increasing access to higher education amidst constraints and challenges. The efforts have led to increases in enrollment and what many countries did not anticipate is the increase in unemployment from the greater output of students. In this study, we use panel data from eleven Sub-Saharan African countries for 2000-2018 to analyze the relationship between higher education and unemployment. A panel fixed effect model was estimated, and the results indicate that unemployment has a negative and significant effect on higher enrollment. Besides, higher education enrollment has a significant but negative effect on employment. Per capita income significantly affects enrollment into higher education and has the expected sign. The estimates further show that government expenditures on higher education play a significant role in the demand for places in higher education.

Crowdsourcing Covid-19 signals in sub-Saharan Africa: Leveraging digital contributor networks for participatory surveillance of Covid-19 symptoms and deaths (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ngozi A Erondu ◽  
Sagal A Ali ◽  
Mohamed Ali ◽  
Schadrac C Agbla
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Specific Information ◽  
Surveillance Systems ◽  
Health Seeking ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Local Networks ◽  
The World ◽  
Sub Saharan

BACKGROUND In sub-Saharan Africa, underreporting of cases and deaths has been attributed to various factors including, weak disease surveillance, low health-seeking behaviour of flu like symptoms, and stigma of Covid-19. There is evidence that SARS-CoV-2 spread mimics transmission patterns of other countries across the world. Since the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way research can be conducted and in light of restrictions on travel and risks to in-person data collection, innovative approaches to collecting data must be considered. Nearly 50% of Africa’s population is a unique mobile subscriber and it is one of the fastest growing smart-phone marketplaces in the world; hence, mobile phone platforms should be considered to monitor Covid-19 trends in the community. OBJECTIVE We demonstrate the use of digital contributor platforms to survey individuals about cases of flu-like symptoms and instances of unexplained deaths in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, and Zimbabwe. METHODS Rapid cross-sectional survey of individuals with severe flu and pneumonia symptoms and unexplained deaths in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia and Zimbabwe RESULTS Using a non-health specific information platform, we found COVID-19 signals in five African countries, specifically: •Across countries, nearly half of the respondents (n=739) knew someone who had severe flu or pneumonia symptoms in recent months. •One in three respondents from Somalia and one in five from Zimbabwe respondents said they knew more than five people recently displaying flu and/or pneumonia symptoms. •In Somalia there were signals that a large number of people might be dying outside of health facilities, specifically in their homes or in IDP or refugee camps. CONCLUSIONS Existing digital contributor platforms with local networks are a non-traditional data source that can provide information from the community to supplement traditional government surveillance systems and academic surveys. We demonstrate that using these distributor networks to for community surveys can provide periodic information on rumours but could also be used to capture local sentiment to inform public health decision-making; for example, these insights could be useful to inform strategies to increase confidence in Covid19 vaccine. As Covid-19 continues to spread somewhat silently across sub-Saharan Africa, regional and national public health entities should consider expanding event-based surveillance sources to include these systems.

Managing African Urbanization in the Context of Environmental Change

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuaib Lwasa
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Economic Growth ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Urban Governance ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Urbanization Rate ◽  
Development And Management

Africa’s urbanization rate has increased steadily over the past three decades and is reported to be faster than in any other region in the world . It is estimated that by 2030, over half of the African population will be living in urban areas . But the nature of Africa’s urbanization and subsequent form of cities is yet to be critically analyzed in the context of city authorities’ readiness to address the challenges . Evidence is also suggesting that urbanization in African countries is increasingly associated with the high economic growth that has been observed in the last two decades . Both underlying and proximate drivers are responsible for the urbanization, and these include population dynamics, economic growth, legislative designation, increasing densities in rural centers, as well as the growth of mega cities such as Lagos, Cairo and Kinshasa, that are extending to form urban corridors . With the opportunities of urbanization in Sub–Saharan Africa, there are also challenges in the development and management of these cities . Those challenges include provision of social services, sustainable economic development, housing development, urban governance, spatial development guidance and environmental management, climate change adaptation, mitigation and disaster risk reduction . The challenge involves dealing with the development and infrastructure deficit, in addition to required adaption to and mitigation of climate change . This paper examines the current state of urban management in Africa .

Monetary Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Monetary Policy ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Policy Regimes ◽  
Export Prices ◽  
Policy Work ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Policy Guidance

Having broadly stabilized inflation over the past two decades, many policymakers in sub-Saharan Africa are now asking more of their monetary policy frameworks. They are looking to avoid policy misalignments and respond appropriately to both domestic and external shocks, including swings in fiscal policy and spikes in food and export prices. In many cases they are finding current regimes—often characterized as ‘money targeting’—lacking, with opaque and sometimes inconsistent objectives, inadequate transmission of policy to the economy, and difficulties in responding to supply shocks. At the same time, little existing research on monetary policy is targeted to low-income countries. What do we know about the empirics of monetary transmission in low-income countries? (How) Does monetary policy work in countries characterized by a huge share of food in consumption, underdeveloped financial markets, and opaque policy regimes? (How) Can we use methods largely derived in advanced countries to answer these questions? And (how) can we use the results to guide policymakers? This book draws on years of research and practice at the IMF and in central banks from the region to shed empirical and theoretical light on these questions and to provide practical tools and policy guidance. A key feature of the book is the application of dynamic general equilibrium models, suitably adapted to reflect key features of low-income countries, for the analysis of monetary policy in sub-Saharan African countries.

Financing Energy Access in Africa

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Kayode Oniemola ◽  
Jane Ezirigwe
Keyword(s):  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Capital Investments ◽  
Energy Access ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Sustainable Technologies ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Diesel Motors

To achieve universal energy access will attract huge capital investments. If sub-Saharan Africa is to realize anything close to the ambitious goals set for its energy access, then new actors, innovative funding mechanisms and sustainable technologies will have to be attracted. Finance is needed for activities such as rural electrification, clean cooking facilities, diesel motors and generators, other renewable energy technologies, oil and gas infrastructures, etc. Finance is also needed in research and development of suitable technologies and funding options as well as investment in the capacity to formulate and implement sound energy policies. This chapter examines the varied financing options for energy access in sub-Saharan Africa. It argues that with appropriate laws in place and effective mechanism for implementation, African countries can significantly engage private sector financing, international financial institutions and foreign donors. The role of the law here will be in creating an enabling environment for financing.

scholarly journals Positioning for success: building capacity in academic competencies for early-career researchers in sub-Saharan Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Merritt ◽  
H. Jack ◽  
W. Mangezi ◽  
D. Chibanda ◽  
M. Abas
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Capacity Building ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Training Experience ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Early Career Researchers ◽  
Academic Competencies ◽  
Sub Saharan

Background. Capacity building is essential in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to address the gap in skills to conduct and implement research. Capacity building must not only include scientific and technical knowledge, but also broader competencies, such as writing, disseminating research and achieving work–life balance. These skills are thought to promote long-term career success for researchers in high-income countries (HICs) but the availability of such training is limited in LMICs. Methods. This paper presents the contextualisation and implementation of the Academic Competencies Series (ACES). ACES is an early-career researcher development programme adapted from a UK university. Through consultation between HIC and LMIC partners, an innovative series of 10 workshops was designed covering themes of self-development, engagement and writing skills. ACES formed part of the African Mental Health Research Initiative (AMARI), a multi-national LMIC-led consortium to recruit, train, support and network early-career mental health researchers from four sub-Saharan African countries. Results. Of the 10 ACES modules, three were HIC-LMIC co-led, four led by HIC facilitators with LMIC training experience and three led by external consultants from HICs. Six workshops were delivered face to face and four by webinar. Course attendance was over 90% and the delivery cost was approximately US$4500 per researcher trained. Challenges of adaptation, attendance and technical issues are described for the first round of workshops. Conclusions. This paper indicates that a skills development series for early-career researchers can be contextualised and implemented in LMIC settings, and is feasible for co-delivery with local partners at relatively low cost.

scholarly journals Suicidal ideation and associated factors among school-going adolescents in rural Ghana

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmanuel Nii-Boye Quarshie ◽  
Samuel Kofi Odame
Keyword(s):  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Associated Factors ◽  
Attempted Suicide ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Rural Adolescents ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Rural Ghana ◽  
Sub Saharan

AbstractSuicidal ideation is a critical risk for attempted suicide and eventual suicide. Little is known about suicidal ideation among rural adolescents in most sub-Saharan African countries. We aimed to estimate the 12-month prevalence of suicidal ideation and to describe some of the common and gender-specific associated factors among in-school adolescents in rural Ghana. We conducted a cross-sectional survey involving a random sample of 1101 in-school adolescents aged 10–19 years in a rural district in Eastern Ghana. The Suicidal Behavior Questionnaire-Revised was used to assess suicidal ideation. Overall, 25.1% participants (95% CI = 22.5–27.7), representing 28.3% females (95% CI = 24.7–32.2) and 21.5% males (95% CI = 18.0–25.2) reported suicidal ideation during the previous 12 months. Females who experienced personal and interpersonal adversities mainly outside the family context were likely to report suicidal ideation, while suicidal ideation among males was associated with conflict with parents. Regardless of gender, adolescents who reported exposure to a friend’s attempted suicide were about two times more likely to report suicidal ideation. The prevalence of suicidal ideation among adolescents in rural Ghana compares with in-school estimates from other countries within sub-Saharan Africa, but also underscores the need for targeted and universal prevention programmes and intervention efforts to mitigate the potential transition from suicidal ideations to suicidal attempts and eventual deaths by suicide among rural adolescents.

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