Browsing: healthcare

• There is a debt crisis in Africa as countries struggle to repay international loans. 
• According to the World Bank, nine African countries entered 2024 in debt distress, with another 15 at high risk of distress and 14 more categorised as moderate risk.
• According to the United Nations, Africa’s public debt will stay above pre-pandemic levels in 2024 and 2025.

At 4 per cent, Africa is projected to be the second fastest-growing economic region in the world in 2024,  according to a report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). However, behind the headline figure is a less optimistic reality.

Many African countries have suffered from slow post-COVID-19 recovery, climate change shocks, worsening food security situation, political instability, weak global growth, and high-interest rates. These economic shocks have pushed over 55 million people into poverty since 2020. The situation is increasingly alarming as more than half of the continent’s countries are in …

• DRC Joins the Organisation of Southern Cooperation after depositing the Instrument of Acceptance
• Secretary-General Manssour Bin Mussallam received the Instrument of Acceptance.
• The OSC, aimed at fostering cooperation and development among Southern Hemisphere countries

The Republic of the Congo has consolidated its full membership status of the Organisation of Southern Cooperation (OSC) by depositing the Instrument of Acceptance by Daniel Owassa, Ambassador of the DRC to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the African Union.

Secretary-General Manssour Bin Mussallam received the Instrument of Acceptance at a handover ceremony yesterday at the OSC Headquarters in Addis Ababa.

The Republic of the Congo is a founding member of the OSC. The depositing of the Instrument of Acceptance signifies the completion of the full membership process by countries in the Global South.

Read Also: SkyPower, AFC, and DRC join forces for $2.3Bn Green Giant project

H.E. Bin Mussallam said the occasion marked the beginning …

• The Bimalab Africa program is an innovation that brings together insurance innovators, technology partners, insurance firms, investors, and regulators.
• BimaLab Africa will expand its footprint to accelerate 55 insurtechs in 15 African countries.
• The initiative is dedicated to tackling pressing issues such as climate change, health, and gender disparities in the sector.

The Bimalab Africa Insurtech accelerator program has received $600,000 (about KSh85.9 million) in funding to expand its operations across Africa. Following the fresh financing round by the Swiss Re Foundation, the program is now set to grow to cover 15 countries across the African continent from the initial 10 countries covered in the 2023 program.

The program offers hands-on venture-building support to high-impact Insurtech start-ups that improve the resilience of underserved and climate-vulnerable communities.

The initiative is dedicated to tackling pressing issues such as climate change, health, and gender disparities while also addressing the challenges micro, small, …

• UK’s $18.86M investment  will support healthcare workers recruitment and retention efforts in Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana.
• Financing is seen as a boost to achieving universal health coverage while bolstering global pandemic preparedness.
• The three countries were selected for the financing due to their evident need for workforce support.

In a significant move to address pressing healthcare workers’ challenges in Africa, the UK government has allocated $18.86 million in funding to boost healthcare staffing levels in Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana.

This investment is geared towards supporting healthcare staff recruitment and retention efforts. Overall, the investment seeks to fortify these nations against global health crises.

UK Health Minister Will Quince, speaking on the importance of this funding, emphasized that it aims to enhance the performance of health systems in these countries. Quince added that the initiative will have a cascading effect on improving global pandemic preparedness and reducing health disparities.

Boosting global

With African nations in desperate need of economic boosts, reinventing the continent’s pharmaceutical “wheel” as a contributor to development has become critical. This crucial venture requires public and private participation and, of course, the willingness of the West’s Big Pharma!

Most Africans lack the means to seek qualified healthcare providers for quality medication. People turn to self-help and alternative medicine to avoid medical expenditures, which are often out of reach. With less than 400 drug manufacturers to cater to the more than 1.3 billion people on the continent, millions of Africans die or suffer from protracted illnesses without consistent access to even the most essential medicines. Widespread ill health can trap people in poverty, as healthier people are more productive.

The pandemic’s effects have exacerbated Africa’s healthcare crisis in the last two years. The situation has captured the attention of investors who noted the gap between supply and demand in …

• Afya Rekod has partnered with Medi-science International Limited to transform healthcare delivery through improved access to personal health data in Africa and Europe
• The partners said the deal would give patients an accessible record of their own health history by enabling patients, doctors and hospitals to host health records securely on one platform 
• Through such partnerships, Afya Rekod said it is decentralising current healthcare systems

Kenya’s Afya Rekod has partnered with British firm Medi-science International Limited to transform healthcare delivery through improved access to personal health data in Africa and Europe.

On Friday, August 19, 2022, the partners said the deal would give patients an accessible record of their own health history by enabling patients, doctors and hospitals to host health records securely on one platform through a digital application.

Through such partnerships, Afya Rekod said it is decentralising current healthcare systems.

Commenting on the partnership, John Kamara, CEO Afya …

Over 250 top-level speakers and panelists including a huge range of Africa’s most important investors, dealmakers, and business leaders, have been confirmed ready to attend the Annual AFSIC-Investing in Africa forum that is scheduled for October 11^th and 12th in London, These Key Figures in the Corporate world will unpack the increasing global investment momentum into Africa’s growing public and private sectors as well as highlighting new growth opportunities across the continent.

The agenda of AFSIC 2021, remains investment-focused, with several of the most experienced and successful asset management firms investing in Africa sharing insights into where the smart money is investing, and business leaders running some of Africa’s most exciting growth companies showcasing new investment opportunities, with focused streams in Banking, Building, Healthcare, Agriculture, Fintech, Education and Sustainable Growth.

With ABSA Corporate Investment Bank heading up an impressive group of supporting sponsors, the conference will also feature …

Debt service is putting tremendous pressure on East African governments because of limited foreign exchange earnings; therefore the Covid-19 vaccination program for East Africa will give investors confidence in most sectors especially agriculture and tourism which are major foreign exchange earners for the region.

The foreign exchange gains will lead to a positive trickle-down effect to the different businesses and general population.…

For decades, African leaders have remained detached from the realities of life for the majority leading to neglect of key and essential infrastructure like healthcare.

With the covid-19 coronavirus outbreak, the systems that have been neglected for as long are starting to show signs of breaking even with the enormity of the virus still way below what some individual countries have suffered.

Most of these leaders have always sought treatment abroad, even for basic illnesses and conditions that can be taken care of at home. But with the distrust in the local systems, they have chosen to always fly out and then come back once they have stabilised to continue with the same cycle of plunder and ignorance of what needs to be done.

See: Coronavirus shakes economies, world forced to change perspective on Africa

The latest cases have been those of Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria who spent the better …