Africa SIG
Vision and Aims
The FPH Africa Special Interest Group (SIG) has been established to represent the response and contribution of health professionals towards the development and implementation of effective and sustainable solutions to protect and improve the health and wellbeing of people in Africa.
Objectives:
- Enable public health professionals from the SIG to provide equitable support to all countries across the African continent.
- Focus efforts to add value to improving public health in Africa by acting as an umbrella group with an overview of the work being
undertaken by several partner groups. - Offer cost-effective public health consultancy to Africa on a charitable basis. Also volunteer the skills, expertise and time of its members.
- Work with partner organisations in the UK and elsewhere; and establish and maintain a two-way respectful partnership with public health partners in Africa.
Previous webinar recordings
To address the need to support public health skills development in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs), members of the FPH Africa SIG established Peoples-Praxis in 2021, a UK registered charity providing a mentoring programme, free online courses on public health topics, and open research workshops.
This webinar demonstrated how aspects of the programme work. Country leads and mentees presented our learning over the last two years and discussed how the programme has been adapted to fit local needs, and how the accreditation of achievements of both mentors and mentees should be provided.
This session covered the progress of the partnerships, sustainability actions, and impact on healthcare systems and health workers across the four countries. The partnership collaborations with the Faculty's Africa SIG include:
- Strengthening Antimicrobial Stewardship (AMS) through improving surveillance and building sustainable capacity and capability in LEKMA Hospital as a centre of excellence for possible roll out (FPH Africa SIG, Ghana Public Health Association, Lekma Hospital)
- Tele-stewardship: An innovative approach to the establishment of antimicrobial stewardship programmes in Nairobi and Kisii counties in Kenya (School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, East Central and Southern Africa Health Community, Mbagathi Hospital)
- Systems strengthening for improving antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) in University of Calabar Teaching Hospital Nigeria (PFH, University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria)
As part of a series of events to engage with their members in 2024, the FPH Africa SIG hosted a webinar to discuss climate and health in Africa.
Speakers:
- Vijendra Ingole, Office for National Statistics
- Dr. Francis Ohanyido, Director-General, West African Institute of Public Health
- Emma Davies, member of the FPH Africa SIG
- Paul Johnstone, Chair of the FPH Climate and Health Committee
This event took place on 8 July 2024.
In Autumn 2023, the FPH Africa SIG launched an engagement exercise with our Faculty Fellows and Members based in Africa. There was a deep interest to connect, engage, and build on the strong relationships we share. In the spirit of bidirectional learning, the Africa SIG is leading a series of webinars in 2024 to showcase our Members and Fellows, with the aim to grow our network and impact.
The first webinar of this series took place on 1 February 2024 to provide an overview and the vision of the SIG, welcome new SIG members, and discuss opportunities for engagement.
Knowledge exchange webinar on globally relevant lessons learnt in the implementation of competency-based education and training for a strengthened public health workforce across Africa and beyond, hosted on 13 April 2023.
The FPH and South Africa CPHM's 'Bilateral knowledge exchange on approaches to public health specialist workforce training South Africa and UK' webinar took place on 23 March 2023.
Africa SIG resources
- Tobacco supply and demand strategies used in African countries
- Infection prevention and control in primary care: a toolkit of resources
Join the Africa SIG
The Africa SIG is co-chaired by Dr Victor Joseph: victor.joseph@doncaster.gov.uk. The Vice-Chair is Prof Diane Ashiru-Oredope: diane.ashiru-oredope@ukhsa.gov.uk. The group reports to the Faculty's Global Health Committee.
FPH members can join this SIG by logging into their FPH members’ portal account, selecting the ‘Committees/SIGs’ button and choosing the correct SIG. You will then be asked to provide a few details, following which your application will be automatically approved. Further details on FPH membership are available here.
SIG Workplan
Activity: Capacity building through a programme of regular learning webinars and resource sharing/ development; and organising Africa SIG Conference.
Outcome: Number of online resources available that has been collated and made available
- Web access to the policies produced
- Use of the online resource
- Online feedback on usefulness of the resource
- Improved health in Africa
- Lead on the production of an online Africa-specific resource on climate and health, and in collaboration with the Sustainable Development SIG and Climate and Health Committee
- Africa SIG conference
Target date: March 2025
Named lead:
- Prof Diane Ashiru-Oredope
- Dr Fatumo Abdi
- Dr Emma Davies
- Dr. Hadjer Nacer
Progress to date:
Outputs:
Activity: Mentoring/coaching public health professionals (e.g. trainees, specialists)
Outcome:
- Mentoring offer through Peoples-praxis
- Better International Health Regulation (IHR) system in
Africa - Trained and competent public health workforce
- A mentoring offer for colleagues in Malawi/SA
Target date: March 2026
Named lead:
- Dr Hannah Patrick
- Dr Toks;
- Dr Victor Joseph
- Dr Anne Dobble
- Dr Fatumo Abdi
- Dr. Hadjer Nacer
- Fatai Ogunlayi
Progress to date:
Outputs:
Activity: Placement Opportunities: World Health Organisation and Africa CDC
Outcome:
- Improved health in Africa
- High quality of specialist public health workforce well verse in Global Health.
- New partnership for placement of Public Health registrars with WHO and Africa CDC.
Target date: March 2026
Named lead:
- Dr Victor Joseph
- Prof Diane Ashiru-Oredope
- Fatai Ogunlayi
Progress to date:
Outputs:
Activity: Engaging FPH professionals based in African institutions
Outcome:
- Engaging FPH members in Africa in the SIG programme
- Nominate members for FPH honorary memberships
Target date: March 2025
Named lead:
- Dr Hadjer Nacer
- Dr Victor Joseph
- Prof Diane Ashiru-Oredope
Progress to date:
Outputs:
Activity: Implement a 3-year MOU (2018-2021) between the FPH and South Africa College of Public Health
Outcome: Improved training of public health specialists in South Africa
Target date: March 2026
Named lead:
- Dr Victor Joseph
- Fatai Ogunlayi
- Prof Diane Ashiru-Oredope
- Dr Fatumo Abdi
- Lily Makurah
- Dr Hadjer Nacer
Progress to date:
Outputs:
Activity: Strengthen Anti-microbial Stewardship (AMS): Continue to support existing CwPAMS projects in Africa - March 2025
Outcome:
- FPH and Ghana
- FPH and Calabar (Nigeria
- University of Nottingham and Kenya
Target date: March 2026
Named lead:
- Dr Sam Ghebrehewet
- Edwin Panford-Quaninoo
- Prof Diane Ashiru-Oredope
- Dr Akan Out
- Dr Fatumo Abdi
Progress to date:
Outputs:
Activity: Explore new Partnership in Africa:
- Contribute to the application process for Fleming Fund CwPAMS projects
- Somaliland & Somalia MoH and hospitals have expressed a strong interest.
Outcome:
- Successful application for Fleming Fund CwPAMS project(s)
- New partnership established
Target date: March 2026
Named lead:
- Prof Diane Ashiru-Oredope
- Dr Fatumo Abdi
Progress to date:
Outputs:
Activity: Strengthen link with academic institutions
Outcome:
- London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) NIHR programme of NCDs in Ghana/Burkina Faso
- UCL Global health team and work with WAHO
- African academic institutions (including MOU with South Africa)
Target date: March 2025
Named lead:
- Dr Hadjer Nacer
- Dr Victor Joseph
- Prof Diane Ashiru-Oredope
- Dr Fatumo Abdi
- Fatai Ogunlayi
Progress to date: New item
Outputs: An FPH academic event on reducing NCDs.
Activity: Climate and Health
Outcome: Establish meaningful partnerships in collaboration with Sustainable Development SIG
Target date: March 2025
Named lead: Dr Emma Davies
Progress to date:
- An FPH blog was published with colleagues in SD SIG
- FPH statements with other SIGs on Floods in Libya, earthquake in Morocco and ongoing conflict in Sudan.
Outputs: Blogs planned
