Publications

Informal social networks and togetherness among women have been approved forms of organization since time immemorial. Women everywhere have formed themselves formally and informally into networks to demand services and promote networks of survival and mutual help to accomplish their reproductive and productive roles.

Ce manuel sur la participation villageoise au Développement Rural a beaucoup de «parents». Il a pu être réalisé grâce à la créativité, au dévouement et au travail novateur de tous ceux qui contribuent, depuis de longues années, au développement des méthodes participatives

Gender training: the source book reviews gender training experiences from the point of view of practitioners. Contributors include gender advocates from different geographical regions (South Asia, Middle East, Eastern and Southern Africa and

Many major issues today – whether sustainable development, waste disposal, negotiations about resource use, rural conflict resolution, natural resource management, clean water supply, food distribution or others – have neither clear problem definitions nor readily available solutions.

This Bulletin presents a case study of a Bolivian primary health care project in which two different types of community financing – direct fees and, subsequently, a prepayment plan – were introduced to help finance health services.

As the hiv/aids epidemic and sexually transmitted diseases (stds) continue to advance worldwide, we are learning ever more about how they affect individuals, households, families, communities, organizations and nations. The individual loss has been enormous, particularly in those countries and regions affected early on. aids is increasingly recognized in developing countries as a serious concern for socioeconomic development as a whole. Its impact is seen in family and community structures and relationships and in sectors as varied as education, employment, health care, social welfare, agriculture and the judiciary. Economic consequences are already apparent. In highly affected countries, the business sector is experiencing increased absenteeism as employees fall ill, care for the sick or attend funerals. Loss of experienced and skilled workers in the formal and informal sectors may lead to lower productivity, savings and investments. In subsistence and small-scale agriculture, loss of labour may result in changes in farming patterns and food shortages.

As the hiv/aids epidemic and sexually transmitted diseases (stds) continue to advance worldwide, we are learning ever more about how they affect individuals, households, families, communities, organizations and nations. The individual loss has been enormous, particularly in those countries and regions affected early on. aids is increasingly recognized in developing countries as a serious concern for socioeconomic development as a whole. Its impact is seen in family and community structures and relationships and in sectors as varied as education, employment, health care, social welfare, agriculture and the judiciary.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has been helping countries make training and learning materials for many years. A specific section has been created for health learning materials (HLM). Many of these materials are meant for health workers in more remote regions, involved in primary health care – people with fewer resources than their colleagues, and often bigger problems.

L’OMS a soutenu des programmes de formation et de réalisation de matériels éducatifs dans de nombreux pays en développement depuis plusieurs années. Une section spécialisée a été créée pour le MEPS. Le matériel produit par cette section est destiné au personnel de la santé intervenant dans des régions isolées où il doit donner les soins de santé primaires. Ces agents ont souvent moins de ressources que leurs collègues des grandes villes et souvent plus de contraintes. Récemment, beaucoup de matériels éducatifs a été produit. En réalité la quantité a primé sur la qualité.

Community health workers (CHWs) are increasingly recognized as an integral component of the health workforce needed to achieve public health goals in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Many factors intersect to influence CHW performance. A systematic review with a narrative analysis was conducted to identify contextual factors influencing performance of CHWs.

Community health workers (CHWs) are increasingly recognized as an integral component of the health workforce needed to achieve public health goals in lowand middle-income countries (LMICs). Many factors influence CHW performance. A systematic review was conducted to identify intervention design related factors influencing performance of CHWs. We systematically searched six databases for quantitative and qualitative studies that included CHWs working in promotional, preventive or curative primary health services in LMICs. One hundred and forty studies met the inclusion criteria, were quality assessed and double read to extract data relevant to the design of CHW programmes. A preliminary framework containing factors influencing CHW performance and characteristics of CHW performance (such as motivation and competencies) guided the literature search and review

South Sudan has one of the worst health and maternal health situations in the world. Across South Sudan, while maternal health services at the primary care level are not well developed, even where they exist, many women do not use them. Developing location specific understanding of what hinders women from using services is key to developing and implementing locally appropriate public health interventions.