CSO participants at regional meeting on access to essential medicinesCivil society organizations from 10 countries in Eastern and Southern Africa met to discuss issues related to access to essential medicines in their respective countries and to map out a strategy on how they could go about to advocate and promote access.
Organised by HAI Africa and SATAM with support from Open Society Institute (OSI), the seminar brought together a cross-section of professionals - lawyers, health professionals, administrators, communication experts and activists working in civil society and non-governmental organizations. The meeting was held at Silver Springs Hotel, in Nairobi Kenya from 6 8 October 2008.
Access to Essential Medicines
Calling for the elimination of medicine stock-outs in public health facilities
One-third of the world population cannot regularly access the essential medicines they need. The most affected are populations in Africa, where availability and price are the biggest barriers to access. At any time, public health facilities in Africa have in stock only about half of a core set of essential medicines. These are medicines used to treat common diseases such as malaria, pneumonia, diarrhoea, HIV, TB, diabetes and hypertension; all of which are among the highest causes of death in Africa.
Access to essential medicines is a human right and a cornerstone of an effective primary health care system. Access to free or affordable essential medicines determines whether people live or die, suffer pain and discomfort or have their ailments cured, recover from illness or endure life long disease. Thirty years since the introduction of the above essential medicines definition, there are still simply not enough medicines in public health facilities throughout Africa. Such stock-outs are worst in rural areas and poor people are the most affected.
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CSO participants at regional meeting on access to essential medicinesCivil society organizations from 10 countries in Eastern and Southern Africa met to discuss issues related to access to essential medicines in their respective countries and to map out a strategy on how they could go about to advocate and promote access.
Organised by HAI Africa and SATAM with support from Open Society Institute (OSI), the seminar brought together a cross-section of professionals - lawyers, health professionals, administrators, communication experts and activists working in civil society and non-governmental organizations. The meeting was held at Silver Springs Hotel, in Nairobi Kenya from 6 8 October 2008.
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