Ebola In Nigeria: Premature School Resumption Involving Up to 80 million Children, Adolescents, Students & Teachers is High-Risk Strategy – For Children, Parents, & ECOWAS Sub-region

Editorials

Special Afri-Dev.Info Editorial Ebola In Nigeria: Premature School Resumption Involving Up to 80 million Children, Adolescents, Students & Teachers is High-Risk Strategy – For Children, Parents, & ECOWAS Sub-region Headlines 42 day no Ebola case period should have been respected. Weak health systems will not be able to cope if strategy backfires. Teachers cannot be converted to emergency health workers based on 3 weeks training. Ebola can still be transmitted in semen weeks after recovery – Sexual health education & commodities crucial to response. Liberia epidemic was worsened by premature relaxation of vigilance. Has the Nigerian Ministry of Education taken a high-risk decision to bring forward re-opening of primary and secondary schools before the country’s Ebola outbreak is certifiably over? The evidence indicates that this may be so. Two full incubation periods (21 days x 2 / 42 days) without cases is the global health standard for declaring an Ebola outbreak over in a particular location. Going by the official Ministry of Health Ebola update (of 1st September) – “the total number of cases of EVD in Nigeria stands at sixteen (16); the number of contacts under surveillance in Lagos stands at 72 while in Port Harcourt, the total number of contacts under surveillance stands at 199” – i.e. for a minimum of 21 days.  The update further confirmed that “No contact in Port Harcourt has completed the 21 day observation period”. The Ministry of Health has also warned that it is likely there will be more confirmed cases of Ebola Yet – on the 5th of September, the Ministry of Education announced that it has reversed its earlier...

2015 African Union Heads of State Assembly, Addis Ababa Ethiopia (30th to 31st January) on Theme of “Year of Women’s Empowerment & Development in Africa

Editorials

2015 African Union Heads of State Assembly, Addis Ababa Ethiopia (30th to 31st January) on Theme of “Year of Women’s Empowerment & Development in Africa Editorial, Summary Findings & Recommendations From New 2015 Africa Scorecard & Factsheet on Violence Against Women & Girls 20 years after the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action; 15 years of Millennium Development Goals; 10 years after the entering into force of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights – on the Rights of Women in Africa and; 5 years into the AU African Women’s Decade 2010-2020: Epidemic levels of violence against girls and women – the most stark, blatant, brutal, unambiguous and dis-empowering manifestation of gender inequality – has not been eradicated – but rather institutionalised, and profoundly entrenched across Africa. From the countries for which data is available well over a quarter – between 25% and 75% of both BOYS AND MEN (15 to 49 years old) in 25 out of 54 African countries – believe that it is justifiable for men to beat their wives for the following reasons : (1) Burning the Food; (2)’Argues’ With Him; (3) Goes Out Without Telling Him; (4) Neglects the Children; Or (5) Refuses Sexual Relations  (See full scorecard) The joint top ten African countries (13 in all) with the highest percentage of MALES 15 to 49 years of age justifying gender based violence are: Central African Republic 75%; Guinea 66%; Congo 62%; Equatorial Guinea 52%; Zambia 49%; Lesotho 48%; Madagascar 46%; Ethiopia 45%; Eritrea 45%; Burundi 44%; Kenya 44%; Uganda 44%; and Cote d’Ivore 42%.

Significantly in 4 of these countries...