Publication Year: within 25 Years and within 10 Years / Topic: Health

1. Budget Brief: National Health Mission

Author:: Avani Kapur, Ritwik Shukla, and Sharad Pandey
Publication Date:: 02-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:: National Health Mission (NHM) is Government of India’s (GoI’s) largest public health programme, which aims to achieve universal access to quality healthcare. It consists of two sub-missions: ■ National Rural Health Mission (NRHM); and ■ National Urban Health Mission (NUHM). This brief uses government data to analyse: ■ NHM finances, including proposed and approved budgets, releases, and expenditures; ■ Staff and bed availability; and ■ Outcomes.
Topic:: Health, Governance, Budget, and Public Spending
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

2. Budget Brief: Ayushman Bharat

Author:: Madhur Sharma, Rahul Das, and Avani Kapur
Publication Date:: 02-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:: Ayushman Bharat, under the aegis of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), was launched by Government of India (GoI) on 23 September 2018. This brief uses government data to analyse the following components of the scheme: ■ Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY); ■ Establishment of Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs); ■ Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM); and ■ Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM).
Topic:: Health, Governance, Budget, and Public Spending
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

3. Moving on Up: Multilevel Monitoring and Advocacy for Health Rights

Author:: Abrehet Gebremedhin
Publication Date:: 01-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Accountability Research Center (ARC), American University
Abstract:: Multilevel approaches to monitoring and advocacy are often used by international development practitioners, particularly in civil society, in efforts to hold governments—from the national to the local—to account for policy implementation. However, such approaches are not yet well understood or identified by many scholars in the social accountability field. This evidence review addresses this gap through a cross-case comparison of multilevel approaches in ten health rights programs across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It draws on published evaluations, working papers, and peer-reviewed journal articles, as well as insights shared by implementers and researchers. Cases were selected to illustrate health rights initiatives that included monitoring or advocacy activity at a minimum of two different levels: local health facility, district, regional, provincial or national. Four significant findings emerge from this review of evidence: Vertical integration is a relatively common feature of multilevel monitoring and advocacy in these ten cases and is most likely to take place at the lower ends of the health system. However, it is largely implicit, and often not articulated in project design or theories of change. Horizontal organizing—the coordination of civil society action across districts or geographies—is a less visible feature of multilevel approaches to health rights programming than vertical integration. Despite the multilevel nature of health monitoring and advocacy in these ten cases, less than half reported working at the regional or provincial level, indicating a ‘missing middle’ between local and national activity. Escalation—the process by which citizens’ unaddressed claims move upwards to those with greater decision- making powers—is an important mechanism for accountability and one way in which vertical integration can happen. However, escalation is not clearly articulated in much of the gray literature, and therefore merits further research. The findings from this evidence review have implications for strategy, including: the importance of explicitly identifying multilevel tactics for monitoring and advocacy; theorizing the process by which unaddressed claims can be addressed, particularly moving up beyond the local level; emphasizing the importance of the ‘middle’ and ensuring regional and provincial decision-making is leveraged; and looking to link vertical integration with opportunities for horizontal organizing.
Topic:: Civil Society, Health, Accountability, Advocacy, and Monitoring
Political Geography:: Africa, Asia, and Latin America

4. Does Project-Level Aid for Water and Sanitation Improve Child Health Outcomes? Evidence from Household Panel Data in Uganda

Author:: Lynda Pickbourn, Raymond Caraher, and Léonce Ndikumana
Publication Date:: 03-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Political Economy Research Institute (PERI), University of Massachusetts Amherst
Abstract:: Empirical studies on the effectiveness of aid to the water, sanitation, and hygiene sector (WASH aid) have focused primarily on access to these services as the benchmark for evaluating the effectiveness of aid in this sector. Given the importance of WASH services for public health outcomes, the effectiveness of WASH aid should also be evaluated in terms of its impact on health outcomes. This is especially important in low- and middle-income countries where achieving sustained improvements in child health outcomes remains a challenge. This paper uses geocoded sub-national data on the location of WASH aid projects in Uganda in conjunction with six waves of nationally representative household-level panel survey data to examine the impact of aid-funded WASH projects on the probability of stunting among Ugandan children and infants. Analysing aid effectiveness at the sub-national level avoids the problems of cross-country heterogeneity in aid effectiveness that plagues other studies. Results of the difference-in-differences regression analysis suggest that proximity to an aid-funded WASH project reduces the probability of stunting by 14–21 per cent. The results suggest that scaling up aid to the WASH sector can help improve child health outcomes in the country.
Topic:: Health, Humanitarian Aid, Water, Sanitation, and Child Care
Political Geography:: Uganda and Africa

5. U.S. Health Care from a Global Perspective, 2022: Accelerating Spending, Worsening Outcomes

Author:: Munira Z. Gunja, Evan D. Gumas, and Reginald D. Williams II
Publication Date:: 01-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Commonwealth Fund
Abstract:: In the previous edition of U.S. Health Care from a Global Perspective, we reported that people in the United States experience the worst health outcomes overall of any high-income nation.1 Americans are more likely to die younger, and from avoidable causes, than residents of peer countries. Between January 2020 and December 2021, life expectancy dropped in the U.S. and other countries.2 With the pandemic a continuing threat to global health and well-being, we have updated our 2019 cross-national comparison of health care systems to assess U.S. health spending, outcomes, status, and service use relative to Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. We also compare U.S. health system performance to the OECD average for the 38 high-income countries for which data are available. The data for our analysis come from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and other international sources (see “How We Conducted This Study” for details). For every metric we examine, we used the latest data available. This means that results for certain countries may reflect the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when mental health conditions were surging, essential health services were disrupted, and patients may not have received the same level of care
Topic:: Health, Health Care Policy, Inequality, and Finance
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

6. U.S. and Global Approaches to Financing Long-Term Care: Understanding the Patchwork

Author:: Celli Horstman, Evan D. Gumas, and Gretchen Jacobson
Publication Date:: 02-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Commonwealth Fund
Abstract:: Most United States adults age 65 and older will need long-term care toward the end of their lives.1 Long-term care, provided in the home, community, or in institutional settings like a nursing home, includes medical care as well as personal, nonmedical care for people who are unable to perform activities of daily living, like cooking or bathing. Some services also may support social needs for those unable to perform what are known as instrumental activities of daily living, such as shopping or medication management. In 2018, more than 5 million people in the United States used home health care, including adult day care or home health agency services, and nearly 4 million people resided in nursing homes or residential care communities.2 Despite the widespread need for long-term care, the U.S. has no national program to cover the costs of long-term care. While certain states have implemented their own programs, the resulting patchwork of funding has left many Americans with no sustainable way to pay for the services they require. Other developed countries have comprehensive, national long-term care financing systems featuring broad eligibility and high levels of financial support. In this brief, we analyze data from multiple sources on long-term care costs in the U.S., as well as spending data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), to better understand long-term care financing strategies in 12 high-income countries. In addition to these data, we synthesized initiatives to long-term care funding in these 12 countries. (For details, see “How We Conducted This Study.”) Since the U.S. does not have a national funding strategy, we also focused on individual state approaches. International and U.S. state approaches may provide insights to policymakers seeking to advance comprehensive long-term care funding.
Topic:: Health, Health Care Policy, Inequality, and Social Services
Political Geography:: Global Focus

7. A Future Projection of Post-Covid-19 in Japan: Universal Values and International Cooperation

Author:: Yukio Sakurai
Publication Date:: 01-2023
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: The Rest: Journal of Politics and Development
Institution:: Centre for Strategic Research and Analysis (CESRAN)
Abstract:: This essay aims to clarify the most popular impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and examine a future projection of Post-COVID-19 in Japan. This is based on interdisciplinary studies, particularly the literature survey on global governance in English and Japanese. Japan has consistently lived after WWII under the principles of freedom, democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. Given the challenges caused by the pandemic, it is unpredictable how much conflict between multiple powers will hinder national security and economic globalization. The following five actions should be executed: Japan should participate in international research activities to envision a future society, Japan should adopt a unique future concept to address ageing populations and social security reform in their international cooperation, a review of neoliberalism, construction of a society that can respond to societal risks, and political leadership and freedom of speech to deal with serious social risks should be championed.
Topic:: Health, Governance, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Japan and Asia

8. Non-economic loss and damage: closing the knowledge gap

Author:: International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD)
Publication Date:: 01-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD)
Abstract:: Climate-related loss and damage is escalating, with many countries experiencing new forms of climate impact, of increasing intensity. The focus until now has been on calculating the economic repercussions of climate risk. Its wider impacts and resulting hidden costs of climate change — such as loss of cultural heritage — are less understood and harder to quantify. This knowledge gap on non-economic loss and damage, which is largely due to limited coordination around research and sparse evidence originating from the global South, urgently needs addressing. This briefing proposes a comprehensive approach for building the evidence base on non-economic loss and damage, particularly the creation of a Loss and Damage Research Observatory. This online platform will lay the foundations for a collaborative South–South–North community of practitioners, ultimately leading to informed policy on this critical area of climate action.
Topic:: Climate Change, Health, Displacement, Conservation, Indigenous, Resilience, and Biodiversity
Political Geography:: Global Focus

9. The UN’s Response to the COVID-19 Infodemic

Author:: Gabriel Delsol and Albert Trithart
Publication Date:: 05-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: International Peace Institute
Abstract:: The COVID-19 pandemic has been accompanied by a related “infodemic.” This infodemic emerged as widespread demand for information about the public health emergency was met with large volumes of false and misleading information. Many of the national and international institutions leading the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the UN, quickly recognized that they also needed to respond to the infodemic. This led to a quick, broad-based response by a broad array of UN agencies and partners. To date, however, there has been no systematic mapping or assessment of the range of initiatives across the UN system. To begin filling that gap, this paper provides an overview of the UN system’s response to the COVID-19 infodemic across four areas: monitoring harmful information related to COVID-19; dispelling false information and providing authoritative information; building information resilience; and setting the agenda. It then assesses some of the successes and challenges of the response across four areas: external partnerships, including with governments, civil society, academia, and social media companies; coordination within the UN system; financial, human, and technological capacity; and impact assessment. The report concludes that the UN’s infodemic response finds itself at a pivotal point: Due to donor fatigue around COVID-19, funding for the infodemic response is falling even while the need for a robust infrastructure to address infodemics and other information disorders may be increasing. UN entities working to address the infodemic and other information disorders should therefore consider the following: Engaging in a consultative process to develop a shared understanding of the infodemic by defining its specific harms in relation to each of their mandates; Sustaining and building capacity to counter infodemics and other information disorders, both in communications departments and in other sections working on infodemic management; Adopting a more standardized, system-wide approach to the use of new technologies and engagement with technology platforms; and Continuing to strengthen long-term information resilience by building the capacity of governments to manage infodemics and supporting strong, independent media.
Topic:: Health, Science and Technology, United Nations, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Global Focus

10. Disease Mix and How Economic Freedom Matters for Health Outcomes

Author:: Vincent Geloso, Kelly Hyde, and Ilia Murtazashvili
Publication Date:: 03-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The Cato Institute
Abstract:: We investigate the institutional foundations of public health. We argue that a key distinction in analysis of disease is between diseases of commerce (diseases associated with movement of people and with affluence) and diseases of poverty (primarily noncommunicable diseases that depend on wealth and income). We show that the mix of disease – the ratio of communicable diseases and those associated with longevity to diseases of poverty – increases in economically free countries. We argue that increasing burdens of diseases of commerce reflects the quality of institutions, as those diseases are better than living shorter, brutish lives where diseases of poverty claim many lives. This analysis also highlights an institutional trade‐off: economically free institutions reduce certain types of disease while contributing to others.
Topic:: Health, Infectious Diseases, Economy, Institutions, and Public Health
Political Geography:: Global Focus

11. Valuing Longer, Healthier Lives: Assessing the Productivity of Health Spending in South Korea

Author:: Karen Eggleston
Publication Date:: 03-2023
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: East-West Center
Abstract:: This research studies the link between medical spending and health outcomes in South Korea, providing evidence on the productivity of medical spending over recent decades. The author advocates for the Korean government to develop a “satellite account for health” to complement national income and product accounts. Current measures do not account for changing quality nor give providers any incentive for cost-effective substitution between forms of treatment for a given condition. By leveraging existing strengths of Korea’s National Health Insurance and health outcome data, Korea can develop an accurate measure of medical productivity and a more accurate measure of overall economic productivity, while becoming a global pioneer of “health satellite accounts” for overall populations. Such a productivity metric built on condition-specific net value can help Korea increase the “bang for the buck” from medical spending, mitigate wasteful spending, and promote high-value innovations for longer, healthier lives.
Topic:: Health, Public Spending, and Productivity
Political Geography:: Asia and South Korea

12. FACTORING THE SMART POWER IN THE INDIA-EUROPEAN UNION ENGAGEMENTS: A SCOPING REVIEW

Author:: Nippun Gupta, Bawa Singh, Aslam Khan, and Jaspal Kaur
Publication Date:: 03-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:: Power is a critical factor in several types of diplomacy. India-EU relations are a classic case of how changing geopolitics prompted diplomatic acumen. This scoping review assesses the changing relations of both partners as a manifestation of Smart Power. The dynamic relations from normative-based to pragmatic and inclusive interests based are evaluated. Their value-based relations are put under international relations theories. Their changing factors of cooperation are used to justify their smart diplomacy, where contemporary relations are less likely to be affected by multilateral interests. To solidify claims of smart power in their relations, the recent TRIPS waiver schism illuminated health diplomacy between the two regions. This health diplomacy discourse promotes smart power diplomacy between India and the EU, where new avenues of cooperation emerge despite pandemic disagreements. The article explores how hybrid power is better than soft and hard power in silos by systematically searching and selecting the existing knowledge in the contemporary context.
Topic:: Diplomacy, Health, Bilateral Relations, European Union, Soft Power, Hard Power, and Smart Power
Political Geography:: Europe, South Asia, and India

13. INFORMING GLOBAL HEALTH DIPLOMACY: EXAMINING HEALTH AND PEACE THROUGH THE LENS OF THE GLOBAL BURDEN OF DISEASE

Author:: Tomislav Mestrovic, Driton Kuqi, and Goran Bandov
Publication Date:: 07-2023
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:: Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:: In this study, we aimed to examine the interconnectedness of health and peace, recognizing its significance within global health diplomacy, international relations, and human rights. For that purpose, we used the results from previous and ongoing Global Burden of Disease studies, which represent a comprehensive systematic appraisal of health problems and risks affecting populations worldwide. This paper could use its methodological underpinnings to analyze the impact of war, conflict, and terrorism on mortality and overall human health. In 2000, war and conflict were responsible for an estimated 310,000 deaths globally, compared to 2019, when this number decreased to 69,000. Recent findings reinforced the association between war, conflict, and increased all-cause mortality. Interpersonal violence also significantly contributed to human health loss resulting from disrupted peace. In Europe, disability-adjusted life years due to injury – including those caused by conflict – declined between 2000 and 2019. As we prioritize global health, peace-building initiatives, and global health diplomacy, big data will increasingly play a substantial role in accurately predicting and describing the health effects related to conflicts.
Topic:: Diplomacy, Health, Terrorism, Conflict, Peace, and Disease
Political Geography:: Global Focus

14. The Labor Market Effects of Disability Benefit Loss

Author:: Anikó Bíró, Cecília Hornok, Judit Krekó, Dániel Prinz, and Ágota Scharle
Publication Date:: 09-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW)
Abstract:: Disability benefits are costly and tend to reduce labor supply. While spending can be contained by careful targeting, correcting past flaws in eligibility rules or assessment procedures may entail welfare costs. We study a major reform in Hungary that reassessed the health and working capacity of a large share of beneficiaries. Leveraging age and health cutoffs in the reassessment, we estimate employment responses to loss or reduction of benefits. We find that among those who left disability insurance due to the reform 58% were employed in the primary labor market, 6% participated in public works and 36% were out of work without benefits in the post-reform period. The consequences of leaving disability insurance sharply differed by pre-reform employment status. 81% of beneficiaries who had some employment in the pre-reform year worked, while only 33% of those without pre-reform employment did. The gains of the reform in activating beneficiaries were small and strongly driven by pre-reform employment status. This points to the importance of combining financial incentives with broader labor market programs that increase employability.
Topic:: Health, Employment, Economy, Disability, Fiscal Policy, Insurance, Labor Market, and Welfare State
Political Geography:: Europe and Hungary

15. Five Urgent Questions on Ecological Security

Author:: Dan Smith and Rod Schoonover
Publication Date:: 04-2023
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Abstract:: The increasing pressure of ecological disruption on people and on security means that ideas and policy on peace and security must increasingly address the need for ecological security. This paper poses five research questions concerning: (a) amplification of antimicrobial resistance (pathogens that are increasingly drug-resistant); (b) the physiological consequences of pollution; (c) the loss of nature’s contribution to people’s well-being; (d) local and regional ecological tipping points; and (e) detrimental organisms and processes that thrive in the rapidly changing planet. Each question has a human health dimension, with likely socio-economic impacts and effects on behaviour, as well as potential effects on security and political stability. Understanding these issues is essential if appropriate responses are to be developed. More research is needed in both the natural and the social sciences, with interdisciplinary work that is in close contact with the policy world. The situation is urgent and policy responses cannot wait until all the answers are known and uncertainty has been fully eliminated.
Topic:: Security, Health, Pollution, and Ecology
Political Geography:: Global Focus

16. Planetary health: A holistic vision for people and the planet

Author:: Danielle Brady
Publication Date:: 09-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: European Policy Centre (EPC)
Abstract:: The nexus between health and the environment has been underscored by crises such as COVID-19 and the climate crisis. As awareness of policy interlinkages grows, so does the need for more coordinated EU and national policymaking. Calls for a more holistic approach have long been recognised, but the pandemic has further emphasised the importance of dismantling existing barriers in policymaking to improve the health status of people, animals, and the planet. This Discussion Paper, funded by Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund, advocates for implementing a planetary health approach across all levels of governance to encourage transdisciplinary action and puts forward ten recommendations: Pursue coordinated policymaking by breaking down silos. Appoint an Executive Vice President for the Well-being Economy. Plan and implement national roadmaps and establish common indicators. Create best practices platforms. Adopt planetary health for health systems. Promote education on planetary health. Adopt a European-wide communication campaign. Invest in research and innovation. Foster the integration of the European Health Data Space with future data spaces. Work with international partners to adopt a global planetary health approach. Planetary health offers many benefits for health and the environment. However, without concentrated efforts to move beyond the traditional siloed approach to policymaking, the benefits may never be realised.
Topic:: Climate Change, Health, European Union, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Global Focus

17. Policy landscape 2023

Author:: Ben Zaranko, Jonathan Portes, Mike Brewer, Paul Cheshire, and Carole Willis
Publication Date:: 09-2023
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
Abstract:: What are the public policy challenges confronting the UK? What plans do the parties have for addressing them? To what extent are these plans fit for purpose? As Parliament returns from its summer recess, Full Fact and UK in a Changing Europe have partnered to produce a series of evidence led, research-based assessments of the key issues that politicians will confront. To do this, we brought together a group of leading experts from respected institutions including the Health Foundation, the Institute for Fiscal Studies, and the Royal United Services Institute. We asked each of them to consider, based on the findings of their own research, the challenges the country faces in their area of expertise, the immediate and longer-term issues politicians will need to address, and the potential implications of any choices they might make. We selected the issues based on the Ipsos issues index, and added security, defence and foreign affairs, which did not figure amongst the public’s priorities in July of this year. The intention of the collection is to inform and not persuade. Each article in this collection is the responsibility of its author.
Topic:: Climate Change, Education, Health, Politics, European Union, Economy, Brexit, Economic Growth, Public Policy, Fiscal Policy, Housing, and Standard of Living
Political Geography:: United Kingdom and Europe

18. Inequality in Chile: Perceptions and Patterns

Author:: Ignacia Lecaros, Daniela Paz Cruzat, Ricardo Pommer Muñoz, Pablo Tillan, and Michael Walton
Publication Date:: 09-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:: Chile has pioneered many things: a market-oriented, “neoliberal” approach to development; an impressive transition from authoritarianism to democracy; innovations in social policy; and an extraordinary series of street protests between 2006 and 2019. While often lauded as a model of economic and social development, the protests reflect acute concerns over perceived failures in the Chilean political, economic and cultural system, concerns that were profoundly inflected with issues of inequality and lack of fairness. To inform this contrast, this paper undertakes a systematic assessment of the perceptions and perspectives of Chilean citizens, both in the context of the protests and in their broader expressed views in surveys. The core theme is that “the street was right”, in the specific sense that the protests reflected much wider sentiments across social classes over perceived inequities in economic advancement, social provisioning, and the undignified “treatment” by state actors and elites. The paper then compares these perceptions with some of the “objective” measures of inequality. While alternative measures indicate modest declines in some measures of inequality, Chile remains a very high inequality society, in relation to income, wealth, and education. These perceptions and patterns are central to Chile’s current development challenges, in ways that resonate with the position of many countries in today’s polarized environment. This is the first of two papers, with the sequel exploring the underlying drivers of inequality and implications for policy direction.
Topic:: Education, Health, Inequality, Protests, State, Perception, and Fairness
Political Geography:: South America and Chile

19. The Guinea Worm, President Carter and Me: A Journey Through Health Diplomacy

Author:: Lisa Rotondo
Publication Date:: 05-2023
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: American Diplomacy
Institution:: American Diplomacy
Abstract:: In September 2001, just days before 9/11, I arrived in Pissila, Burkina Faso for my Peace Corps assignment. I was eager to get to work helping my new home community do surveillance for a neglected tropical disease (NTD) called dracunculiasis, or Guinea worm disease. As a Peace Corps Volunteer in rural Burkina Faso, I biked from village to village, asking community members if they were aware of anyone with Guinea worm disease, an infection that has impacted both humans and animals since ancient times. Thanks, in part, to the work of volunteers before me, I never actually saw a person with Guinea worm disease during my two years as a volunteer. Burkina Faso was on the brink of eliminating the disease, and I remember thinking that the children in my community would never know the word for Guinea worm in their language, Moorè; it would not be in their vocabulary because they would never have to worry about it. I’ve reflected on that more than once during my career in public health. Knowing that we are truly making diseases history has been the drive underlying my efforts for the last two decades.
Topic:: Diplomacy, Health, Memoir, and Public Health
Political Geography:: Africa, United States of America, and Burkina Faso

20. How to Strengthen Gender Equality Policies? A Review of Data, Policies and Processes

Author:: Gizem Fidan and Itır Akdoğan
Publication Date:: 06-2023
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:: This report presents recommendations for improving gender equality policies in Turkey. To this aim, it reviews data comparing Turkey and the European Union, studies policy documents and analyses experiences of experts and decision makers on gender inequality focusing on 17 sub-headings in such domains as work, money, knowledge, time, power/ representation, health and digital inclusion.
Topic:: Health, Inequality, Representation, Inclusion, Gender, and Work
Political Geography:: Europe and Turkey

21. Evaluating The Social and Economic Consequences of Global Warming On African Women

Author:: Eyesiere-Hope Essien
Publication Date:: 04-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Women of Color Advancing Peace, Security and Conflict Transformation (WCAPS)
Abstract:: By Eyesiere-Hope Essien of the Climate Change Working Group Global warming is significantly impacting developing countries and the effects are far-reaching which is having a devastating impact on African women and their communities, leading to adverse social and economic consequences. Climate change has resulted in an increase in temperature, more extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and a decrease in water availability. As a result, African women are facing a growing number of challenges related to food insecurity, water scarcity, and healthcare access. They are at greater risk of poverty, displacement, and exploitation. These issues can be further exacerbated by a lack of access to education and employment opportunities. It is essential to understand the nature of these impacts and to take action to mitigate them and ensure African women have the resources and skills to adapt to the changing environment.
Topic:: Climate Change, Development, Health, Water, Women, and Food Security
Political Geography:: Africa

22. Community Health Workers as Rights Defenders: Exploring the Collective Identity of the Mitanins of Chhattisgarh, India

Author:: Shriyuta Abhishek and Samir Garg
Publication Date:: 12-2023
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Accountability Research Center (ARC), American University
Abstract:: This Working Paper discusses the Mitanin program, a state-run community health worker program in Chhattisgarh state, India. It is based on a year-long reflection and action research exercise by the implementing organization, the State Health Resource Centre (SHRC). It argues that the collective identity of these community health workers (Mitanins) is central to their work defending the social and economic rights of their community. Collective identity often plays an important role in social movements for people’s economic and political rights. However, government-funded workers rarely get involved in such movements. The authors wanted to understand whether collective identity plays a role in driving the multi-issue activism of community health workers. A composite definition of this collective identity emerged from the research. Throughout the interviews and discussions, the Mitanins described their collective identity as a sense of solidarity that all Mitanins share with the community they serve and belong to, and a feeling of sisterhood with other women and each other. It is the shared experience of being a group of empowered women with a common mission who must use their knowledge and compassion to support the people they serve. The value system underpinning their mission dictates that people should not be denied their rights. The Mitanins’ collective identity is layered; they are not merely frontline health workers, but women who care deeply about their community. They are problem-solvers, activists, and community leaders. Their collective action and collective identity as women leaders in solidarity with the community is mutually reinforcing, and has enabled them to undertake multi-issue activism and transform themselves into frontline rights defenders. The authors conducted a state-wide survey along with focus group discussions and in-depth interviews. The survey (n=558) aimed to establish what proportion of Mitanins are involved in multi-issue activism. It found that in the preceding three years, 84 percent had taken rights-based action in at least one of three domains: food security and nutrition (68 percent); healthcare (56 percent); and gender-based violence (21 percent). They refer to these actions as ‘rights-based’ because they involve negotiation and confrontation with local elites and government officials, as well as writing formal complaints to government officials. Other than rights-based actions, Mitanins also provide information to community members about their rights and entitlements to health programs, food security, and nutrition under government programs—information that is often not readily accessible to poor people in India. This paper analyzes the patterns of autonomous collective action through discussion, interviews, and the rights-based songs and slogans written by Mitanins. The authors argue that the Mitanins’ collective identity was formed due to two main factors: the program’s movement-building approach; and the degree of autonomy enjoyed by Mitanins. The movement-building approach nurtured the activist tendencies of Mitanins, and the voluntary nature of their work allowed them to retain their autonomy vis-à-vis the health system bureaucracy
Topic:: Health, Human Rights, Women, and Communal Identity
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

23. Activating Spaces, Scaling Up Voices: Community-based Monitoring and Planning of Health Services in Maharashtra, India

Author:: Abhay Shukla, Shweta Marathe, Deepali Yakkundi, Trupti Malti, and Jonathan Fox
Publication Date:: 06-2023
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Accountability Research Center (ARC), American University
Abstract:: From 2007, the Indian government’s National Health Mission (NHM) supported civil society networks to carry out large-scale participatory monitoring to improve health service access and quality under the Community-based Monitoring and Planning (CBMP) program. In the state of Maharashtra, this social accountability initiative endured more than a decade and a half, despite constraints and unpredictable government funding. The CBMP program in Maharashtra supported state-wide civil society networks to enable active citizen participation in health oversight committees. It was rooted in a broad network of diverse community-based organizations and civil society organizations that work with socially excluded communities, led by Support for Advocacy and Training to Health Initiatives (SATHI). The CBMP network combined many social accountability tools into a multilevel strategy, using community assessments of health services and local meetings with clinic staff to inform problem-solving efforts at local, district, and state levels of the health system. This government-funded civil society initiative worked with local officials to convene public dialogues and to activate previously dormant official oversight bodies, animated by a parallel network of autonomous monitoring committees. This Working Paper presents SATHI’s analysis of the CBMP program’s strategy and institutional dynamics, and documents its lasting effects on two participatory oversight institutions: Village Health, Sanitation, and Nutrition Committees (VHSNCs)—part of local government, and Rogi Kalyan Samitis (Patient Welfare Committees)—part of the health system. Field research, carried out shortly before the pandemic, compared the activation of these hybrid oversight bodies in areas with and without a legacy of intensive CBMP action. Key findings include: Official participatory spaces for citizen engagement with the health system were much more active in districts where CBMP networks had intensively promoted grassroots capacity for voice. Frontline health system responsiveness to issues that could be addressed locally—identified as ‘CBMP-sensitive’—was very high. But the health system’s degree of responsiveness to problem-solving efforts decreased at higher levels. The period of intensive CBMP effort to build grassroots awareness and capacity was limited to six years. Nevertheless, that effort had lasting effects on the levels of activity of local hybrid health oversight bodies. The pandemic revealed additional evidence of the medium-term survival and institutional impact of CBMP-enabled social networks.
Topic:: Civil Society, Health, Governance, Accountability, Community, Monitoring, Planning, Monitoring, and and Evaluation (PME)
Political Geography:: South Asia and India

24. A Healthier and More Sustainable Global Food System: What is at Stake for the EU?

Author:: Marta Antonelli
Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: Fixing the global food system is arguably the most powerful leverage to nurture the world’s population while keeping human activity within the biophysical limits of the planet. Yet, food systems are today a threat to both human and planetary health, and thus require bold and forward-looking strategies as well as multi-stakeholder collaboration.
Topic:: Agriculture, Climate Change, Health, Politics, Natural Resources, European Union, Food Security, and Sustainable Development Goals
Political Geography:: Europe

25. Analysis of the Healthcare Sector in Africa and Its Policy Implications for Korea

Author:: Young Ho Park, Munsu Kang, Yejin Kim, Kyu Tae Park, and Young-Chool Choi
Publication Date:: 03-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP)
Abstract:: One of the main changes in Korea’s foreign affairs in recent years is the expansion of official development assistance (ODA), among which Africa is showing particularly rapid growth. Korea’s ODA to Africa accounted for 15% of its total ODA budget in 2010, and rose to 25% in 2019 as Korea emphasized its role in international development. Korea ranks 11th in terms of the cumulative size of ODA to the African healthcare sector between 2011–2019, totaling 674 million USD. As Korea’s expansion of ODA and solidarity in international development aid to respond to COVID-19 are related, the expansion of ODA in the African healthcare sector is anticipated to continue. This study analyzes features of the healthcare sector in Africa in an effort to suggest various plans for development cooperation, based on an evaluation of Korea’s ODA project design to enable the effective provision of ODA.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Development, Health, Economic Growth, COVID-19, and Foreign Assistance
Political Geography:: Africa, Asia, and South Korea

26. India–East Africa: A Not So Healthy Relationship?

Author:: Isabelle Saint-Mezard and Françoise Nicolas
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Institut français des relations internationales (IFRI)
Abstract:: Due to historical as well as geographical reasons, India and East Africa have long been close partners. In the recent period however, and even more so since the early 2000s, these ties have tightened as a result of combined efforts by the government of India and its business community. The presence of communities of Indian origin in several East African countries has also acted as a catalyst. East Africa is perceived as a valuable partner both by Indian authorities and by Indian private companies. Although the two types of Indian players may not explicitly coordinate their actions, their interests dovetail nicely in this particular region. The health sector sticks out as one major sector on which Indian actors focus in East Africa. It provides a striking example of the multilayered complementarity between India and East Africa, on the one hand, and between public and private Indian players’ interests on the other. However, India’s activism in the health sector is not necessarily perceived positively by the East African host countries. Despite some technology transfers and efforts by the Indian actors, be they public or private, to promote capacity-building, East African countries find themselves in a situation of dependence as a result of Indian companies exporting and producing drugs, building hospitals, improving hospital management and Information Technology (IT) infrastructure, or digitalizing healthcare. However, the major point of tension pertains to the promotion of medical tourism. Although offshore healthcare comes with many benefits, it is unlikely to be sustainable for the East African economies in the long run. Moreover, the money spent on medical tourism could arguably be used more usefully to develop local medical facilities and competence. The recent developments in the context of the pandemic have made the associated risk very clear. The challenge in the coming years will be for the two parties to find a way to better balance their relationship and set it on firmer ground – in other words, to make it healthier.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Health, Bilateral Relations, and Partnerships
Political Geography:: Africa, South Asia, and India

27. Social Policy Expansion and Retrenchment After Latin America’s Commodity Boom

Author:: Sara Niedzwiecki and Jennifer Pribble
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Kellogg Institute for International Studies
Abstract:: The literature on social policy expansion and retrenchment in Latin America is vast, but scholars differ in how they explain the outcomes, arriving at different conclusions about the role of democracy, left parties, favorable economic conditions, and social movements in shaping reform. What can welfare state developments since the end of the commodity boom teach us about the theoretical power of these arguments? This paper engages this question, seeking to explain recent incidents of social policy reform in 10 presidential administrations in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay. Using a combination of crisp-set qualitative comparative analysis (csQCA) and case studies, we identify multiple paths toward social policy expansion and retrenchment that involve the absence and presence of electoral competition, economic resources, party ideology and linkage mechanism, social movement pressure, international pressure, and legacies. The results show that while both parties of the left and right expanded social programs, only the right engaged in retrenchment, yet partisanship alone is insufficient for explaining reform outcomes, as the variable must appear in combination with other factors depending on the party’s linkage mechanism. The results provide new insight into the politics of social policy reform in Latin America, showing the relevance of complex forms of causality.
Topic:: Health, Poverty, Social Movement, Democracy, Inequality, Public Policy, and Political Parties
Political Geography:: Brazil, Argentina, South America, Uruguay, Latin America, and Chile

28. Does an effective government lower COVID19’s health impact? Evidence from Viet Nam

Author:: Duc Anh Dang and Ngoc Anh Tran
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: Government effectiveness has played an important role in tackling the crisis caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This paper discusses the different aspects of government effectiveness in explaining the variation in the COVID-19 confirmed cases and death levels in Viet Nam. We use the Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index in 2019 to measure the quality of government effectiveness at the local level. The findings show the importance of health system capacity in the battle against COVID-19. We find that increased government transparency is significantly associated with lower confirmed rates. For the impact of the level of participation, we find that provinces that have higher quality of village head elections or where people have more opportunities to participate tend to have lower infected cases, especially where people participate in the formal and informal association and have voted in the National Assembly election.
Topic:: Government, Health, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Vietnam and Southeast Asia

29. Health and ethnic inequalities in Mozambique with special reference to leprosy

Author:: Isabel Maria Casimiro and Júlio Machele
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United Nations University
Abstract:: The subject of this paper is health and ethnic inequalities in Mozambique, with special reference to leprosy. It is argued that the health policies and strategies adopted in the colonial and post-colonial periods led to an unequal distribution not only of certain diseases but also of health infrastructures. The colonial regime, by neglecting and creating ineffective leprosaria in central and northern Mozambique, ‘ethnicized’ Lazarus disease, a fact corroborated by its current unequal distribution. In turn, post-colonial health policies and health coverage failed to take this inequality into account. The current National Leprosy Control Program aims to end leprosy and thus eliminate its identification with the ethnolinguistic groups in northern and central Mozambique. This qualitative study, which draws on reports from the Ministry of Health and NGOs, statistics, and observations, falls within the scope of the social sciences, with an emphasis on the comparative historical-sociological method.
Topic:: Health, Inequality, Ethnicity, and Leprosy
Political Geography:: Africa and Mozambique

30. ‘Peace through Health’ in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Ground for dialogue or guise for continued occupation?

Author:: Yotam Rosner
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Mitvim: The Israeli Institute for Regional Foreign Policies
Abstract:: “Peace through Health” is a theoretical and applied approach that sees humanitarian health initiatives as a primary basis for dialogue and cooperation between adversaries. This approach posits that health initiatives can spawn increased discourse and dialogue between parties to a conflict, build trust and promote cooperation on various issues, eventually facilitating the transition from conflict to peace. Based on interviews with representatives of an Israeli human rights organization that provides health services in the Occupied Territories, this article examines the implementation of the “peace through health” approach in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Under the Oslo Accords, Israel handed responsibility for the health of the Palestinian population to the Palestinian Authority (PA).However, continued Israeli control and absence of full Palestinian sovereignty have resulted in a weakened and poor Palestinian health system. The severe shortage of health resources has created growing Palestinian dependence on local and international humanitarian health organizations, including health professionals from the Israeli side. An analysis of the interviews conducted for this article indicates that the humanitarian assistance by Israeli health professionals provides an opportunity to develop dialogue, achieve logistical cooperation, and establish trust between the peoples.At the same time, the article discusses the possible disadvantages of this approach in the Israeli-Palestinian test case as an example of humanitarian work that fosters normalization and preserves the status quo of occupation.
Topic:: Health, Occupation, Conflict, Peace, and Dialogue
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, and Palestine

31. Access to Healthcare: A right not a luxury

Author:: Sasha Hilani
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: The past couple of years have been detrimental to Lebanon and to all those who reside there, particularly the LGBTQIA+ community. In 2021, the national suicide prevention hotline received approximately 1,100 calls per month, twice the amount in 2020. The deep crises Lebanon is going through have led to increased cases of mental health issues, especially among marginalized and vulnerable groups, particularly the LGBTQIA+ community. This policy brief examines the challenges that LGBTQIA+ individuals face when accessing mental health services and recommends approaches to ensure more equitable and facilitated access.
Topic:: Health, Health Care Policy, Discrimination, and LGBT+
Political Geography:: Middle East and Lebanon

32. Inequality Kills: The unparalleled action needed to combat unprecedented inequality in the wake of COVID-19

Author:: Oxfam Publishing
Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:: The wealth of the world’s 10 richest men has doubled since the pandemic began. The incomes of 99% of humanity are worse off because of COVID-19. Widening economic, gender, and racial inequalities—as well as the inequality that exists between countries—are tearing our world apart. This is not by chance, but choice: “economic violence” is perpetrated when structural policy choices are made for the richest and most powerful people. This causes direct harm to us all, and to the poorest people, women and girls, and racialized groups most. Inequality contributes to the death of at least one person every four seconds. But we can radically redesign our economies to be centered on equality. We can claw back extreme wealth through progressive taxation; invest in powerful, proven inequality-busting public measures; and boldly shift power in the economy and society. If we are courageous, and listen to the movements demanding change, we can create an economy in which nobody lives in poverty, nor with unimaginable billionaire wealth—in which inequality no longer kills.
Topic:: Health, Inequality, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Global Focus

33. Vaccine Equity in ConflictAffected Areas: The Challenges of Development, Production, Procurement, and Distribution

Author:: Katherine DeLand
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: International Peace Institute
Abstract:: While the wide-ranging impacts of COVID-19 are being felt in all countries and communities, the pandemic is having a disproportionately large impact on vulnerable populations, such as people living in areas affected by fragility, conflict, and violence. Vaccines hold enormous promise to mitigate these impacts, but the complications inherent to armed conflict make accessing vaccines especially challenging. Even when countries do receive vaccines, they often face challenges in rolling out vaccination programs, whether because they lack adequate capacity or because the doses are set to expire or are not acceptable to the communities set to receive them. This issue brief focuses on the challenges of equitably distributing COVID-19 vaccines to populations in conflict-affected areas. It begins by looking at general issues related to the development, approval, production, procurement, and distribution of vaccines. It then examines the particular challenges to distributing vaccines in conflict-affected areas both before and during the vaccine rollout. The report concludes with several recommendations for stakeholders and policymakers to improve the delivery of vaccines in conflict-affected areas: Redistribute global resources to increase the supply of vaccines to conflict-affected countries; Increase the transparency and predictability of global vaccine supplies; Enhance cooperation and coordination at the national and local levels to deliver vaccines to conflict-affected areas through existing humanitarian response mechanisms; and Ensure that vaccination campaigns in conflict-affected areas adhere to humanitarian principles.
Topic:: Health, Conflict, Vaccine, COVID-19, and Humanitarian Response
Political Geography:: Global Focus

34. Does Europe need a Health Union?

Author:: Anne Bucher
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Bruegel
Abstract:: Health outcomes in the European Union are good by international standards, even compared to other developed economies, and improved continuously before COVID-19. This reflects the alignment of the objectives of improving health and wellbeing with the overall socio-economic objective of prosperity, and suggests that a radical overhaul of EU health policy is not needed. However, the EU could benefit from closer integration in some areas and be more effective in delivering a high level of health protection. Action could be taken in the following areas: The European Commission’s November 2020 Health Union package to increase resilience to cross-border health threats is ambitious, in particular with the establishment of the Health Emergency Response Authority, which extends the scope of cooperation in health emergencies. The EU should pursue further the Health Union approach to address cross-border externalities and enhance health security. It could, for instance, do more to tackle anti-microbial resistance, or define minimum requirements for the resilience of health systems. For non-communicable diseases, the EU should tap the economies of scale of research and knowledge organised at EU level, and put in place systems for the surveillance of non-communicable diseases and consolidation of scientific knowledge. This could be achieved through an extension to non-communicable diseases of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control mandate. The ‘Health in all Policies’ principle is a key channel to deliver good health outcomes at EU level. EU scientific agencies provide health risk assessments in a number of areas, but the EU should better organise, coordinate and consolidate the scientific knowledge that underpins health-protection measures in sectoral legislation, and should more systematically apply better regulation rules to the health impacts of EU policies. The EU should support the digital transformation of health systems and set high targets for the European Health Data Space initiative, which is a critical infrastructure for the future of health research, regulation and policymaking. Several non-health EU policy objectives (cohesion policies, European Pillar of Social rights, economic governance) are linked to the performance of health systems. A common understanding on how to measure this performance would inform these policies in a consistent way. Moreover favourable health outcomes in the EU have not reduced health inequalities, which remain high between and within EU countries. Monitoring of health inequalities, including those related to access to and quality of healthcare, should be improved as an initial step.
Topic:: Health, European Union, Regional Integration, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Europe

35. COVID-19 in the European Union: health impacts and effects on economic activity

Author:: Leonardo Cadamuro, Scott Marcus, and Francesco Papadia
Publication Date:: 07-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Bruegel
Abstract:: This paper quantitatively describes different aspects of the COVID-19 pandemics: new cases, hospitalisations, intensive-care admissions and deaths, while illustrating their changing relationships over time. It then assesses how the different variables have affected relevant sectoral and macroeconomic indicators. Finally, it concludes that, from an economic perspective, what matters when it comes to managing the pandemic is to prevent intensive-care admissions and deaths arising from COVID-19. The success of vaccination should be measured in terms of its ability to prevent the most serious consequences, rather than its ability to prevent infections and hospitalisations.
Topic:: Health, European Union, Economy, Macroeconomics, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Global Focus

36. Beyond Statelessness: 'Unchilding' and the Health of Palestinian Children in Jerusalem

Author:: Osama Tanous, Bram Wispelwey, and Rania Muhareb
Publication Date:: 07-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Statelessness & Citizenship Review
Institution:: Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness, Melbourne Law School
Abstract:: Understanding the key determinants of health of Palestinian children in occupied East Jerusalem is enhanced by analyzing Jerusalem as a settler colonial frontier. Structural racism, prolonged occupation, and settler colonialism shape the social and political determinants of health in Jerusalem, generating ill health and insecurity for Palestinian children who are rendered stateless in their own city. They are “unchilded” and, in fact, treated like enemies of the settler state. Colonial violence penetrates their family stability, homes, classrooms, and targets their bodies and health. In providing a thorough analysis of the lived experience of indigenous Palestinian children in Jerusalem, a broadened understanding of the effects of statelessness on their health can begin to take shape.
Topic:: Health, Territorial Disputes, Children, Citizenship, Displacement, and Stateless Population
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, and Palestine

37. The Complex History of US-Philippine Health Partnerships

Author:: Leslie V. Advincula-Lopez
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: East-West Center
Abstract:: Leslie V. Advincula-Lopez, Development Studies Program and Institute of Philippine Culture Ateneo de Manila University, explains that, "[l]ong before the term, global health diplomacy (GHD) became a buzzword in international relations, an efficient Philippine public health system... was a focal point of US-Philippine relations."
Topic:: Diplomacy, Health, Bilateral Relations, Partnerships, Public Health, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Philippines, North America, Asia-Pacific, and United States of America

38. The COVID-19 Pandemic in Oceania: Health Policy Decisions Matter

Author:: Neal A. Palafox and Wilfred C. Alik
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: East-West Center
Abstract:: Neal A. Palafox, MD, MPH, Professor, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, & Wilfred C. Alik, MD, Clinic Chief for the Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Hilo, HI, Co-Founder of the Micronesian Health Advisory Coalition, and Chairman of Marshallese COVID-19 Task Force, "articulate a disparate range of pandemic experiences across Pacific Island countries and territories (PICTs), in terms of COVID 19 community transmission, cases, mortality, and vaccination rates."
Topic:: Health, Vaccine, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Asia-Pacific and Oceania

39. COVID-19 in the MENA: Two Years On

Author:: Marc Lynch, Vahid Abedini, Yasmina Abouzzohour, Meliha Benli Altunisik, and Mona Ali
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: Early in the pandemic, POMEPS convened an online workshop with a diverse group of scholars working across the MENA region to discuss the initial impacts and to think through possible trajectories. That workshop resulted in POMEPS Studies 39, which included twenty-one essays ranging across the MENA region. Several major themes ran across those essays. We collectively expected regimes to securitize the pandemic, using the excuse of lockdowns to crack down on a protest wave that had reached multiple countries in 2019 and to further entrench authoritarian rule. We expected variation in state capacity to be a critical variable in terms of the ability of states to effectively respond to the pandemic. And several essays anticipated soft power international competition, as great powers used vaccine diplomacy to sway public attitudes their way. Two years on, how did those predictions hold up? In April 2022, POMEPS convened a follow-up workshop with some of the same scholars and a number of new contributors to assess how well those early projections panned out, and to assess the actual impacts of COVID on the region after two years. We are delighted to now publish the results of that workshop and ongoing conversations among a diverse group of scholars of the region.
Topic:: Civil Society, Health, Politics, Sectarianism, Authoritarianism, Economy, Solidarity, Soft Power, Violence, Public Health, Students, COVID-19, Securitization, Gender, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:: Iran, Middle East, Israel, Palestine, North Africa, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, and United Arab Emirates

40. Toward a Paradigm Shift in Humanitarian Response: Centering Women and Girls in Integrated Health and Protection Services in Syria

Author:: Amany Qaddour
Publication Date:: 03-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Brown Journal of World Affairs
Institution:: Brown Journal of World Affairs
Abstract:: While regional instability and upheaval in the Middle East and North Africa may have foreshadowed the complexity and longevity of the crisis that would unfold in Syria in 2011, few anticipated it would exceed ten years, amounting to 6.8 million refugees across the world and 14.6 million people in need of hu- manitarian assistance within the country.1 The crisis has been defined by mass displacements, with large swaths of the population uprooted from their homes and forced to reside in camps and precarious housing; sieges in Aleppo City and Eastern Ghouta; chemical weapons attacks in Khan Shaykhoun and Douma; infectious disease outbreaks, including polio and cholera; food insecurity, notably among children and infants; a rise in persons with disabilities; persecution of aid workers; and both systematic and indiscriminate aerial bombardment of civilian infrastructure—namely hospitals, schools, and marketplaces.
Topic:: Health, Women, Syrian War, Girls, Humanitarian Response, and Protection
Political Geography:: Middle East and Syria

41. Care in the Gap (1/19/22)

Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: The Harriman Institute
Abstract:: Please join us for the fourth event of our Work of Care in Russia speaker series, a presentation by Tomas Matza (University of Pittsburgh).
Topic:: Health, Health Care Policy, and Care
Political Geography:: Russia and Europe

42. Governing Habits: Treating Alcoholism in the Post-Soviet Clinic, Eugene Raikhel

Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: The Harriman Institute
Abstract:: Critics of narcology—as addiction medicine is called in Russia—decry it as being "backward," hopelessly behind contemporary global medical practices in relation to addiction and substance abuse, and assume that its practitioners lack both professionalism and expertise. On the basis of his research in a range of clinical institutions managing substance abuse in St. Petersburg, Eugene Raikhel increasingly came to understand that these assumptions and critiques obscured more than they revealed. Governing Habits is an ethnography of extraordinary sensitivity and awareness that shows how therapeutic practice and expertise is expressed in the highly specific, yet rapidly transforming milieu of hospitals, clinics, and rehabilitation centers in post Soviet Russia. Rather than interpreting narcology as a Soviet survival or a local clinical world on the wane in the face of globalizing evidence-based medicine, Raikhel examines the transformation of the medical management of alcoholism in Russia over the past twenty years. Raikhel's book is more than a story about the treatment of alcoholism. It is also a gripping analysis of the many cultural, institutional, political, and social transformations taking place in the post-Soviet world, particularly in Putin's Russia. Governing Habits will appeal to a wide range of readers, from medical anthropologists, clinicians, to scholars of post-Soviet Russia, to students of institutions and organizational change, to those interested in therapies and treatments of substance abuse, addiction, and alcoholism.
Topic:: Health, Mental Health, Alcohol, Post-Soviet Space, and Addiction
Political Geography:: Russia and Europe

43. Health of nations: How Europe can fight future pandemics

Author:: Anthony Dworkin
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR)
Abstract:: As the crisis phase of covid-19 recedes, there is a chance to improve international cooperation on global health – but also a danger that competing reform proposals will lead to inaction. The EU can best support reform of pandemic preparedness and response if it takes account of the concerns of different global powers. The union should combine a push for reform of and increased funding for the WHO with support for a new fund for health emergencies, overseen by a representative group of countries. The EU should promote a new global compact on health, matching countries’ commitment to surveillance and reporting of pathogens with support for stronger healthcare systems and greater equity in the allocation of countermeasures. The EU-Africa relationship offers a chance to pioneer such an approach, but the EU will need to go further in this than it has so far. The EU should promote African vaccine manufacturing, including by pressing European pharmaceutical companies to transfer knowledge and technology to Africa.
Topic:: Health, European Union, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Africa, Russia, China, Europe, India, and United States of America

44. Radioactive Consequences of a War in Ukraine

Author:: Rico Chandra
Publication Date:: 02-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Council on International Policy (CIP)
Abstract:: A war in Ukraine could lead to thousands of radioactive sources getting lost, or worse, getting stolen and repurposed for political destabilization. So what is a radioactive “source”? It is a material that is specifically manufactured for the purpose of emitting radiation. For example, some forms of cancer are treated using radiotherapy whereby intense gamma radiation, emitted from a pencil-sized lump of radioactive metal, is directed at the tumor. This lump of highly radioactive metal is a radioactive “source”.
Topic:: Health, Military Strategy, Radiological Weapons, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, and Ukraine

45. Consumption of New and Emerging Tobacco and Nicotine Products in Zambia: Implications for Policy

Author:: Shimukunki Manchishi, Edna Kabala, and Mulenga Chonzi Mulenga
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Zambia Institute for Policy Analysis and Research (ZIPAR)
Abstract:: The global economy has in recent years observed a rapid increase in the consumption of New and Emerging Tobacco and Nicotine Products (NETNPs). Consumers of the NETNPs in Zambia and elsewhere justify consumption of these products on grounds that they are less harmful and expose them to fewer health risks compared to traditional tobacco smoke. However, studies have shown that these NETNPs do not entirely filter out harmful chemicals from tobacco as presumed by many people, and in some cases may even expose smokers to more smoke over longer periods of time as is the case of water pipe (shisha). This study investigated the consumption and taxation of NETNPs in Zambia to generate knowledge and come up with evidence-based policy recommendations aimed at informing appropriate stakeholders on the consumption and taxation of NETNPs. The study employed a mixed methodology encompassing a desk review, a survey of 400 respondents and key informant interviews. In terms of the consumption of NETNPs, the study revealed that a majority of those surveyed consume water pipe, which ranked highest among the NETNPs consumed in Zambia. Other NETNPs commonly consumed include bidis, e-cigarettes and dry snuff (nsunko). The consumption of these products varied according to the economic status of the consumers, with products such as snus and e-cigarettes being much more preferred and consumed by those in employment because they can afford more costly products. Meanwhile, products such as water pipe and bidis were the products of choice among those not employed and this could also be attributed to the relatively lower cost of the products. Regarding the socio-demographic characteristics of the surveyed sample, the study established that most of the consumers of NETNPs were young, unmarried males. A notable finding in the study was that those who had attained tertiary level of education were the biggest consumers of NETNPs. With regards to taxation of NETNPs, the study has found that there is potential to increase taxes substantially based on consumers’ willingness to pay which would require very high tax levels to deter consumption. This would require the government to considerably increase excise taxes on these products which would ultimately increase their price and hence curtail their consumption. The study has established that the taxation of all tobacco products in Zambia is the sole responsibility of the ZRA which draws its mandate from various provisions of the Zambian law. Broadly there are eight categories used to classify tobacco and nicotine products based on the HS codes. This broad classification forms the basis for taxation of tobacco and nicotine products in Zambia. The study has established that there are four main taxes applied on tobacco products in Zambia, these include: a 25% customs duty levied on the value of the product imported; a VAT of 16% on the value of the product; a 5% surtax; and excise duty of 145% of the value for duty purposes (VDP) or K355 per kg for all tobacco products.
Topic:: Health, Digital Economy, Business, Tax Systems, Public Policy, Tobacco, Public Health, and Gender
Political Geography:: Africa and Zambia

46. CPLP: the first twenty-five years

Author:: Joseph Marques
Publication Date:: 07-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Conjuntura Austral: Journal of the Global South
Institution:: Conjuntura Austral: Journal of the Global South
Abstract:: The decision by Conjuntura Austral to dedicate a special issue to the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) is to be commended. The uniqueness of the organization justifies a timely review of a small sample of its activities to date. Created in 1996, the CPLP adopted three main vectors of activity:1) the promotion and dissemination of the Portuguese language; 2) cooperation in a wide array of domains (i.e., education, health, science and technology, defense, agriculture, public administration, communication, justice, public safety, culture, sport and social communication, sustainable development, etc.); and 3) political and diplomatic coordination, especially in multilateral forums. The organization also agreed to adhere to several fundamental political principles such as the respect of the sovereignty of each member country; non-interference in domestic issues; reciprocal treatment; peace, democracy, rule of law, human rights, and social justice; territorial integrity of each member state; and the commitment to the promotion of development and cooperation. In addition to a common language and shared cultural heritage, the uniqueness of the CPLP results from the union of nine non-contiguous member states into a privileged geocultural space – the lusosphere – dedicated to the active promotion of its three main goals across four continents. It is a privileged forum for a “pluricontinental dialogue” in Portuguese. In addition, each country contributes by bringing its history, its unique interpretation of the “lusosphere” as well as its regional context (i.e., membership in the European Union, Mercosur, Southern African Development Community, Economic Community of West African States, etc.) as well as economic opportunities to the group. By joining, member countries reinforce the group’s collective projection onto the world stage as well as the opportunity to expand each member country’s diplomatic footprint. While each member had different reasons to join (i.e., maximize politicaldiplomatic cooperation, language promotion, widen access to technical cooperation, etc.), all believe that the CPLP can bolster the group’s overall political and diplomatic prestige while enhancing their collective and individual prospects. This special issue consists of six articles ranging from language to health, security and defense issues, business negotiations and civilian-military relations. It covers but a few topics from a long list of issues which, after the first twentyfive years of this new international organization, warrant the attention and critical review of academic scholars.
Topic:: Security, Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, Diplomacy, Health, Business, Language, Indigenous, and Civil-Military Relations
Political Geography:: Africa, Europe, Brazil, South America, Southeast Asia, and Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP)

47. Building public trust to successfully deploy AI in EU healthcare

Author:: Danielle Brady
Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: European Policy Centre (EPC)
Abstract:: COVID-19 has underscored the importance of digital health: the digitalisation of healthcare would improve health systems’ resilience and service delivery, empower citizens, and bolster research and innovation. However, despite the many benefits of introducing technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) into the European healthcare sector, it also raises questions on its impact on the healthcare workers, the potential for new inequalities, privacy issues and public trust. Not to mention, broader questions on the ethics and social implications of AI. The EU’s Proposal for a Regulation Laying Down Harmonised Rules on Artificial Intelligence and the European Health Data Space address many of these concerns, but cannot combat them all alone. Without public trust, acceptance and understanding, AI’s full potential in healthcare will not be realised. Attention must be given to the communication of the benefits of AI in healthcare to the public, Europeans’ digital literacy, the upskilling of the EU health workforce, and the investment in AI technologies. Clear and convincing explanations regarding AI use in healthcare are required so that citizens understand their benefit and trust that their personal data will be handled safely. If the EU and its member states fail to build trust in the deployment of AI in healthcare, Europe will miss a chance to reap all the benefits that AI offers to its citizens and their health.
Topic:: Health, European Union, Regulation, Artificial Intelligence, COVID-19, Digitization, and Trust
Political Geography:: Europe

48. April 2022 Issue

Author:: Stephen Hummel, F. John Burpo, Jeremy Hershfield, Andrew Kick, and Kevin J. O'Donovan
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: CTC Sentinel
Institution:: The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:: The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed nearly one million American lives. It has upended many more and produced disastrous consequences around the world. But it could have been even more catastrophic had Western nations and companies not developed highly effective vaccines. As the world hopefully begins to emerge from the pandemic, it is important to reassess the global biological threat landscape, including the possibility that bioterrorists or other bad actors might seek to exploit advances in biotechnology to engineer a future pandemic. In a joint effort, the Combating Terrorism Center and the Department of Chemistry and Life Science at West Point have assembled some of the best and brightest thinkers in the counterterrorism, policy, and scientific communities around the world for their perspectives and analysis on the evolution of the biological threat picture. The result is a two-volume set of special issues, with the second volume being published next month. The feature article of this volume anticipates how bioterrorists may exploit tunable viral agents in a new age of bioterrorism. The article is authored by Major Stephen Hummel and Colonel F. John Burpo with Lieutenant Colonel Jeremy Hershfield, Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Kick, Kevin O’Donovan, and Colonel Jason Barnhill. They write: “Components of a disease such as transmissibility, lethality, and the infectious window can potentially be modified for desired tactical, operational, or strategic effects. While this capability is currently beyond the skills and knowledge of the biology enthusiast, a trained individual would possess such skills and knowledge, though they may lack the necessary material and infrastructure support. Hence, it is necessary to develop and maintain capabilities that can respond to a variety of pathogens and possible effects.” This issue features an interview with Lawrence Kerr, who until his retirement from government service earlier this year was the Director of the Office of Pandemics and Emerging Threats in the Office of Global Affairs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. We also interview Brad Ringeisen, the Executive Director of the Innovative Genomics Institute. Before his retirement from government service in July 2020, Dr. Ringeisen served as the Director of the Biological Technologies Office at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Filippa Lentzos, Gregory Koblentz, and Joseph Rodgers argue “the biological risk landscape is rapidly evolving and presents significant new challenges to preventing the accidental, reckless, or malicious misuse of biology. At the same time, oversight systems to ensure that life sciences research is conducted safely, securely, and responsibly are falling behind. An urgent overhaul to realign biorisk management with contemporary risks is needed.”
Topic:: Health, Counter-terrorism, Risk, Pandemic, and Bioterrorism
Political Geography:: Global Focus

49. Estimating Japan’s Return on Investment from an Ambitious Program to Incentivize New Antibiotics

Author:: Rachel Silverman and Adrian Towse
Publication Date:: 12-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Center for Global Development
Abstract:: Anti-microbial drugs form the backbone of modern medicine. Yet their lifespan is naturally limited; over time, use of these drugs selects for mutations that survive exposure those same drugs, driving “anti-microbial resistance,” or AMR. Already, drug-resistant infections kill an estimated 23,210 Japanese citizens every year. In the absence of sufficient research and development (R&D) investment for new antimicrobials, deaths from drug-resistant infections could increase dramatically in the coming decade. To address this growing crisis and solve market failures that prevent the development of new antibiotics, the government of Japan is considering a new program that would provide minimum guaranteed revenue to the successful developers of new antibiotics. In this note, we present the results of a modelling exercise to estimate the likely return on investment (ROI) from such a program, assuming it is paired with complementary and proportionate efforts from Japan’s G7 partners. The results are necessarily imprecise due to several uncertain parameters, but nevertheless provide evidence of a very high expected ROI that is robust to different inputs and assumptions.
Topic:: Health, Science and Technology, Health Care Policy, and Medicine
Political Geography:: Japan and Asia

50. Estimating the UK's Return on Investment from an Ambitious Program to Incentivize New Antibiotics

Author:: Rachel Silverman and Adrian Towse
Publication Date:: 12-2022
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Center for Global Development
Abstract:: Anti-microbial drugs form the backbone of modern medicine. Yet their lifespan is naturally limited; over time, use of these drugs selects for mutations that survive exposure those same drugs, driving “anti-microbial resistance,” or AMR. Already, drug-resistant infections kill an estimated 7,600 citizens of the United Kingdom (UK) every year. In the absence of sufficient research and development (R&D) investment for new antimicrobials, deaths from drug-resistant infections could increase dramatically in the coming decade. To address this growing crisis and solve market failures that prevent the development of new antibiotics, the UK has set up “subscription models” for purchasing antibiotics; this has been applied to two drugs thus far, and the model is under consideration for a broader rollout. In this note, we present the results of a modelling exercise to estimate the likely return on investment (ROI) from an expanded program to incentivize new antibiotics, assuming it is paired with complementary and proportionate efforts from the UK’s G7 partners. The results are necessarily imprecise due to several uncertain parameters, but nevertheless provide evidence of a very high expected ROI that is robust to different inputs and assumptions.
Topic:: Health, Science and Technology, Health Care Policy, and Medicine
Political Geography:: United Kingdom and Europe

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COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS