INDEPTH NEWS BULLETIN
No. 7, November 2001
Indepth/BCG Hlabisa Meeting
The final Indepth/BCG Strategic Planning process meeting has successfully been brought to an end. The meeting was attended by representatives from both Rockefeller Foundation and The Wellcome Trust.
Apparently, sixteen (15) Indepth Site members participated. Namely Nouna, Navrongo, Rufiji, Agincourt, AMMP, Brac, Matlab, Operations, Magu, Ifakara, Pujowero, Butajira, Rakai, Hlabisa and Filabavi.
The meeting discussed the trend of the Network, govenance issues, site strategic plans, donor vision and preparations towards a successful Annual General meeting in Addis. Meeting was informed that member sites in Asia are planning to meet among themselves to develop a Strategic Plan. The Chair did not promise any resources, however, he encouraged sites that are have completed their plans to provide support and mention was made of Ifakara’s success.
At the closing stages of the meeting, Rockefeller representative informed participants that, the Foundation had shifted its focus on supporting individuals to supporting viable Networks such as Indepth due to its institutional linkage and long term social impact. The Wellcome Trust was of the opinion that if Indepth were able to capture the trend of world health issues, it would be move the network forward. She encouraged sites to team up and do things together that can be measured and put marketing tags on output.
Health Equity Workshop, Ho - Ghana
Indepth Network has also successfully completed a health equity workshop in Ho, Ghana from a poverty perspective. The workshop was an initial investigators’ meeting and brought together about 35 participants including resource persons from 12 demographic surveillance sites. (The following sites were represented: BRAC, Matlab, Filabavi, AMMP, Ifakara, Nouna, Agincourt, Dikgale, Butajira, Navrongo, Bandim and Farafenni. The participants presented and compared notes concerning their findings on a Rockefeller supported equity project. They analyzed data and developed an asset index to be applied to health indicators as such as infant mortality, fertility and use of services.
The workshop was privileged to listen to Ghana Government officials make a presentation on plans and policies to alleviate poverty and more especially the methods the Government is planning to deploy in monitoring and evaluating her programmes.
The workshop was facilitated by Dr Dave Gwatkin, World Bank, Washington, Shea O Rutstein, Macro International, Maryland and Abbas Bhuiya, ICRDD, Bangladesh.
The workshop was organized at the same time as the Equity Workshop. It was facilitated by Philippe Bocquier, French Institute for Research in Africa and Jonathan Sterne, Department of Social Medicine, University of Bristol. The Scientific Committee consisted of Peter Aaby, Bandim Site, Peter Byass, Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umea University, Pierre Ngom, APHRC, Kenya and Joanna Armstrong Schellenberg, Ifakara Health Research Centre.
The aim of the workshop was enable participants analyze longitudinal vaccination data from their sites using survival techniques. In achieving this aim, the participants made presentations on vaccination data collection methods from their individual sites and participated in working group sessions.
Intensive preparations are underway towards the forthcoming Annual General Meeting of Indepth Network. At the Hlabisa meeting, it was recommended that ;
a) to boost up the human resource capacity at the Secretariat, someone is seconded to the secretariat to support preparations towards the Addis meeting
b) at least ten (10) good junior scientists be supported to attend the AGM. The criteria for selection will be based on submission of