WAHO Collaborates with the Countdown to 2030 for their Second Nutrition Data Analysis Workshop
Dakar, 18 October 2019 - A WAHO team led by the Director of Healthcare Services, Dr Kofi Busia, is in Dakar for the second workshop of the Regional Initiative to strengthen the data analytical capacity and evidence for Nutrition in West Africa. Other members of the WAHO team include Tome Ca, PO for Health Information Systems, Serge Somda, Consultant for the Health Information programme and Dr William Bosu the PO for Non-Epidemic Diseases and Neglected Tropical Diseases, supported by Mr. Ben Idrissa Traore, West African Health Informatics expert.
The five-day workshop, which brings together health experts in nutrition and health information from the Ministries of Health and Research Institutions of the ECOWAS Member States, is being organized in collaboration with the Countdown to 2030 Consortium, which includes Johns Hopkins University, UNICEF, Alive & Thrive / FHI360, African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) and Federal University of Pelotas, Brazil.
The main objectives of the workshop are to:
- Develop comprehensive country and regional analyses on inequalities in nutrition:
- Update analyses based on the 1st workshop and the data compiled in the intermediate phase,
- Produce a comparative country nutrition equity performance profile, gaps and policy brief covering three major dimensions of inequality: wealth, urban-rural residence, and administrative region/districts,
- Strengthen the analytical skills of participants in survey and other types of analyses, as well as in the interpretation and communication of the results,
- Produce the key elements of joint scientific papers with regional synthetic analyses on (1) inequalities in nutrition status among adolescent girls and adult women; (2) Subnational inequalities in infant and child nutrition in West Africa; (3) Data, Policy and Program gaps in nutrition in West Africa.
The following outputs are expected at the end of the workshop:
- Country specific policy brief highlighting inequities in women, children and adolescents’ nutrition intervention coverage and status and implications for programs and policies
- Detailed comparative country nutrition equity performance profiles focusing on women, children and adolescents’ nutrition intervention coverage and status
- Regional synthesis presentation on nutrition inequities
- Technical document which forms the basis for 3 publications:
- Paper 1: Trends, inequalities in nutrition status among adolescent girls and adult women in sub-Saharan Africa
- Paper 2: Subnational inequalities in infant and child nutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa
- Paper 3: Monitoring nutrition status in West Africa: data, policy and program gaps
At the Opening Ceremony, Dr Kofi Busia, the Director of Healthcare Services (who represented the Director General of WAHO, Prof Stanley Okolo), welcomed all the participants and thanked the Countdown to 2030 consortium as well as other partner institutions, for putting together the workshop.
He re-emphasised that the project’s objectives are consistent with WAHO’s commitment to making “quality health information available, easily accessible and used at all levels in countries and the ECOWAS region for informed policy and decision making, improved health services and better health for the population”. He expressed the hope that results of the workshop together with the previous ones, will strengthen WAHO’s capacity to support the ECOWAS member states to improve their health information systems especially on Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health in the region.
He concluded by expressing the DG’s profound gratitude to the Honourable Minister of the Republic of Senegal and through him, to the Government and people of Senega,l for accepting to host the workshop in Dakar, and for the hospitality accorded all the delegates.