R4D Sanitation

Antibiotic therapy for Shigella dysentery

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:17:00 GMT

Miscellaneous P. R. H. Christopher, K. V. David, S. M. John, V. Sankarapandian 2009 Christopher PRH, David KV, John SM, Sankarapandian V. Antibiotic therapy for Shigella dysentery. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2009, Issue 4. Art. No.: CD006784. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD006784.pub2 Shigellosis is a bacterial infection of the colon that can cause diarrhoea, dysentery (diarrhoea with blood and/or mucus) and may lead to death. It occurs mainly in low- and middle-income countries where overcrowding and poor sanitation exist, and may lead to around 1.1 million deaths per year globally, mostly in children under five years.

The intention of giving antibiotics in shigellosis is to speed recovery, reduce the seriousness of the disease, and reduce the length of time patients are infective. However, some antibiotics can have serious side effects while others may not be effective against the Shigella bacteria.

The review examined both the effectiveness and the safety of antibiotics in treating Shigella dysentery. While antibiotics tested here appeared safe and effective, there was insufficient evidence to suggest which antibiotics were superior. More well designed trials will help inform decision making.

This is Open Access Week

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 01:00:00 GMT

This week, 19-23 October 2009, is the first International Open Access Week, which aims to broaden awareness and understanding of Open Access.

RiPPLE Annual Report 2009

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:57:00 GMT

Miscellaneous 2009 61 pp. The main achievements during this 3rd year of the programme were:

1. Enrichment of the knowledge base: the conclusion of a set of seven studies under Access and Growth themes, contributing to new knowledge on how sustainable, livelihood enhancing services can be financed, planned, implemented and maintained in an uncertain climate (see chapter 2).

2. Dissemination and promotion of results: the dissemination and promotion of research results at prominent national and international events, including the MUS symposium, the 5th World Water Forum, the 6th EEA Conference, the WECD conference and the 7th EEA conference (see chapter 3).

3. Uptake of fundings: the uptake of research findings both in policy and in practice, particularly at regional and woreda level where water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) planning and implementation takes place (see chapter 5).

4. Institutionalisation of Learning and Practice Alliances (LPAs): the establishment and institutionalisation of LPA processes and the increased understanding and use of action research among local stakeholders (see chapter 6).

5. Strengthening of local leadership: strengthened Ethiopian leadership of the programme following the appointment of a local Programme Director and a Programme Manager employed by Hararghe Catholic Secretariat (HCS) (see chapter 7)

RiPPLE Annual Report 2008

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:45:00 GMT

Miscellaneous RiPPLE 2008 59 pp.

This report covers progress on key themes and objectives; lessons learnt with regard to working with partner institutions, case study methodology, and good practice/innovation; and programme management.

Notable achievements during the year July 2007-June 2008 were:
1) the conclusion of a set of case studies that add significantly to the body of knowledge on Ethiopia's water and sanitation sector ;
2) the establishment of Learning and Practice Alliances (LPAs) at all levels (from woreda to Nile-region level), and the successful inclusion of practitioners drawn from these alliances in research activities; and
3) greater Ethiopian leadership of the programme itself through new hosting by the Hararghe Catholic Secretariat (HCS), the appointment of an Ethiopian Programme Manager based in Addis Ababa, and Ethiopian research leadership of the two Long-term Action Research Studies (LARS) under Phase 2 of the programme.

Software Manual Content.

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:26:00 GMT

Miscellaneous 0 38 pp. This Manual is one of several outputs associated with the DFID Post Harvest Fisheries Research Programmes Fish Loss Assessment and Control (FLAC) initiative. Other FLAC tools are Costing Control Methods. FishLoss (Database of loss information), Predictive Model (Assessing the impact of intervention), Trials Database (Assessing the impact of quality intervention), Ice Calculator and Sanitation Control (monitoring factory-based quality control) computer software.

Report of the third Meeting of Forum for Learning on Water Supply and Sanitation (FLoWS)

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:35:00 GMT

Miscellaneous FLoWS Organizing Committee 2009 33 pp. The third FLoWS meeting was held on November 28, 2008, in Adama, Nazareth, Ethiopia. This meeting report highlights the improtance of FLoWS as a platform from which stakeholders from across the country can share experiences and learn from each other. The one-day meeting focused on financing in the WASH sctor with presentations on:

- Drinking Water Supply policy of the Government
- Review and Update of the Water Sector Joint Aid Budget Review 2008
- Effective Financing of Local Government to Provide Water Supply Services In Ethiopia: The Case Of Tenna Woreda
- Status of Regional and Woreda Budget Transparency
- Economic Sustainability of Water Supply Schemes in the Rural Highlands of Oromiya
- What Financing Modalities Works Best for the Water Sector?
- Community Development Fund (CDF) in Rural Water Supply and Environment Program, Amhara Region
- World Bank Supported WASH Project Matching Fund Case Study
- Sharing Sector Information.

DFID releases a new project database

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 01:00:00 GMT

Information about projects funded by DFID, ranging from emergency aid for countries affected by conflict or humanitarian crises, to ongoing support to improve health, education and sanitation in the poorest countries, is now available online.

Promotion of sustainable control of covered kernel smut of sorghum through broadening the cropping base. Final Technical Report.

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 14:32:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Hayden, N. 2002 Natural Resources Institute, UK., 67 pp. Covered kernel smut (Sporiosorium sorghi) is a major constraint to yield of small-holder sorghum in semi-arid areas. The fungus is seed-borne and develops systemically as the sorghum crop grows. The teliospores of the fungus replace the grain in the panicle causing direct crop losses in proportion to the area of the panicle infected. Previously disease-free grain can be contaminated during harvest. Thus, covered kernel smut can increase rapidly causing high levels of yield loss and staple food deficits. Suitable seed sanitation practices have been evaluated both on-station and on-farm in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. Farmer selection of disease-free seed or use of a fungicide seed treatment will effectively control covered kernel smut.

DFID Research Programme on Sanitation and Hygiene - Call for Expressions of Interest

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 01:00:00 GMT

DFID has issued a call for expressions of interest in leading a research programme on improving access to and uptake of adequate sanitation and hygiene.

DFID seeks applications for three posts in the Research Uptake Team

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 01:00:00 GMT

DFID is seeking to fill three posts in the Research Uptake team within the Policy and Research Directorate - Team Leader and two Research Evidence Brokers

Private Water Public Grime: Domestic Water Supply and Poverty Alleviation in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 14:32:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Sokile, C. S., Tukai, R., Kimambo, Z. and Tumbo, S. 2003 WaterNET/WARFSA Symposium Proceedings, 15-17 October 2002, Gaborone, Botswana, Paper 13: pp 207-210 Water supply and sanitation is increasingly becoming a proxy for poverty. Water supply as a key component of poverty alleviation has been identified in the Millennium Development Goals. This paper discusses water supply to the poor in Tanzania, and suggests that unless water is incorporated into grassroots poverty alleviation initiatives, the MDGs may not be reached.

Financing in the water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH) sector in Ethiopia: Evidence from Benishangul-Gumuz regional state.

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 08:46:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Getnet Alemu and D. Thomas 2009 Synthesis Paper, Research-inspired Policy and Practice Learning in Ethiopia and the Nile Region (RiPPLE), Ethiopia, 40 pp. The scaling-up of financial resources and management in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) is part of an effort to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). However, putting additional resources into the sector is only a starting point: it is crucial to ensure that money is spent effectively. RiPPLE's Finance theme hypothesis is that improving equitable access to WASH for the poor is contingent on effective organisation of financing arrangements. This paper reviews the financing of the WASH sector in Ethiopia and then goes on to look at two specific financing channels, using case study information from Benishangul-Gumuz regional state.

Pakistan Toolkit

Tue, 26 May 2009 16:18:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Transparency International Pakistan 2005 24 pp. For the Pakistan component of this project, Transparency International chose improving delivery of Water Supply and Sewerage to the poor living in shanty towns and low income areas in Gulshan Town, Karachi. Based on this action research project, this report outlines a step-by-step guideline on how to set up effective ICT tools to assist poor communities obtain better access to public services.

Pakistan National Report

Tue, 26 May 2009 16:04:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Transparency International Pakistan 2005 27 pp. The Pakistan section of this project aimed to improve transparency, quality and effectiveness of the water supply and sewerage to Gulshan Town, Karachi, by the use of ICTs. It was assumed that after successful implementation of the project it would be replicated in the otehr towns of the City District Government, Karachi.

The project aimed to combine ICT with report card methodology and other participatory techniques such as Focus Group Discussions to give a forum for the poor to voice their own demands for changes in public service provision. An ICT tool was developed, including the opening of a complaint sector. This report details the development and implementation of the tool and lessons learned from the project.

New Director at ODI

Fri, 20 Feb 2009 01:00:00 GMT

Alison Evans is announced as the new Director at the Overseas Development Institute.

Going to Scale: The Potential of Community-led Total Sanitation

Tue, 03 Feb 2009 13:44:00 GMT

Current Sanitation remains one of the biggest development challenges in developing countries. Around 6,000 people, mainly children under five, die everyday due to poor sanitation, hygiene and water.

Sanitation-related diseases such as diarrhoea and cholera continue to seriously undermine human health and well-being, particularly in South Asia where 900 million people have no access to adequate sanitation. Improving sanitation is therefore key to achieving the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of reducing child mortality and combating disease.

In recent years, the impact of the Community led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach has drawn significant attention. At the heart of this approach is a shift away from the focus on supporting toilet construction for individual households, to an approach that seeks to create open defecation free villages through an emphasis on attitudinal and behaviour change of the whole community. CLTS is an approach in which people in rural communities are facilitated to do their own appraisal and analysis of their sanitation situation and the extent and consequences of open defecation. They are not instructed or taught but allowed to come to their own conclusions, and take their own action.

In its classical form, a small team of facilitators conduct a triggering. The facilitators may be government, NGO or project staff, or Natural Leaders from other communities. The PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal) principle that they can do it is fundamental and PRA methods are used. These include participatory mapping on the ground to show where people live and where they defecate, transect walks to visit and stand in those places, calculations of quantities of shit (the crude local word is used) produced by each household and the community, and identifying pathways to the mouth leading to the shocking recognition that we are eating one anothers shit. This triggering is designed to facilitate the communities recognition of the negative externalities to all as a consequence of the sanitary practices of some, and thus lead to a moment of ignition and a collective decision and action to end open defecation. When triggering is successful, Natural Leaders emerge. People dig holes and build latrines. There are no standard models and construction is by self-help.

There is a growing recognition that this approach offers tremendous potential for developing countries to achieve their MDG targets for sanitation. This has resulted in this approach spreading from Bangladesh where it originated in 2000 to India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Pakistan and Nepal in Asia; Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia in Africa, Bolivia in Latin America and Yemen in the Middle East.

OBJECTIVE:
To make a difference by reducing the deprivation and enhancing the wellbeing of poor people through research to generate knowledge and insights concerning CLTS, through participatory action research engaging with practice, and through the sharing of knowledge, experience and insights across communities, organisations and countries.

PROJECT AIMS

Research to understand on-the-ground realities of CLTS and issues of spread, scale and quality
The research examines some of the core assumptions of CLTS around hardware subsidies, local notions of sanitation/hygiene, facilitation, sustainability and replicability. It is concerned with identifying on-the-ground realities through interdisciplinary research drawing on sociological, anthropological and political and institutional analysis. The project involves research in communities with and without CLTS, and in various stages of moving towards it, looking at the processes of ignition, adoption, dissemination and spread, local dynamics within communities, the effects of Government and NGO programmes with and without subsidy or other inducements, and the relationships between bureaucratic norms and imperatives, and programmes at the community level. Another issue for consideration is the social and physical sustainability of total sanitation. The research will seek to identify the most favourable conditions under which total sanitation can be achieved.
Participatory action learning to engage with practice and improve processes and outcomes
Participatory Action Learning engages with the facilitators and implementing organisations (both NGOs and governments) in ways which will enhance learning and improve practice and policy. Areas of attention include the selection, training and mentoring of facilitators; processes of preparation, ignition and follow up and support; forms of support for external and also community facilitators, networking at local and other levels, and overcoming obstacles.
Networking and sharing between organisations and countries to influence policy and practice
The aim of the networking and influencing component is to optimise the exchange of experiences and learning and to have an impact on policy. The networking activities facilitate sharing, learning and functional linkages between and across organisations, programmes and countries via Sharing and Learning workshops, presentations at UK and international events to share research findings and policy-relevant lessons, experiences and insights, a CLTS mailing list and a website. The CLTS website www.communityledtotalsanitation.org serves as a global hub for CLTS, connecting the network of practitioners, communities, NGOs, agencies, researchers, governments, donors and others involved or interested in CLTS. The site, which contains practical information about the approach, information on CLTS in different countries, research papers, relevant news and events and many other useful materials, serves as an up-to-date virtual resource centre and a space for sharing and learning on CLTS across organisations, countries and sectors. The site reflects the rich, varied and dynamic nature of the approach and hopes to encourage debate around key aspects of CLTS in order to improve policy and practice. The CLTS website is populated with contributions from those engaged and interested in CLTS around the world.

Book on CLTS
Website hot topic on CLTS on livelihoods connect (now replaced by www.communityledtotalsanitation.org)
Establishment of a CLTS network
IDS Working Papers on CLTS and related issues
Events to facilitate sharing and learning on CLTS
Practical publications (eg Handbook on CLTS)

Through generating cutting edge knowledge on CLTS and sanitation, and ensuring that lessons are learnt and shared across countries and organisations, the project supports the development and spread of good CLTS practices and supportive policies which will contribute to major gains in human wellbeing and help to address the MDGs.

The research that has been carried out by IDS and its partners in Bangladesh, India and Indonesia will be published in the form of research papers and a book on CLTS in 2009.

The main output of the action learning to date has been the CLTS Handbook published by Plan (UK) and IDS.

Networking activities have established an active and well-connected global CLTS network with linkages and partnerships across organisations, sectors, countries and continents; linking practitioners, researchers, policymakers, governments, NGOs and donors, facilitating exchanges of experience and information with the aim of contributing to policy and practice. Goodwill, momentum and interest have focused on the CLTS website which is the core global resource for CLTS. A new website dedicated to CLTS, which replaces the old hot topic on livelihoods connect, was launched in December 2008: www.communityledtotalsanitation.org.

Sharing and Learning Workshops on CLTS (at SACOSAN II and III and AfricaSan+5).
Workshop reports:

Bongartz, Petra (forthcoming) One Day Sharing and Learning Workshop on Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS), 17th November 2008, Workshop Report.
Bongartz, Petra (2008) CLTS Sharing and Learning Workshop at AfricaSan, Durban, South Africa, 17th February 2008
Bongartz, Petra (2007) CLTS Workshop at SACOSAN II (Second South Asian Conference on Sanitation), Islamabad, Pakistan, 19th September 2006.
Chambers, Robert (2008) Durban remarks: Lessons learned with CLTS, 19th February 2008.
A global conference on CLTS (December 2008) to present research findings, take stock of global developments and experiences with and research on CLTS, and mark the end of the Year of Sanitation.

Sanitation Scoping Study

Mon, 19 Jan 2009 09:20:00 GMT

Current

1. DFID's new Research Strategy commits its Central Research Department (CRD) to undertake research that will contribute the achievement of the hardest to reach Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). MDG 7 (Environmental Sustainability) targets include halving the proportion of people living without water and sanitation. Since the goals were agreed in 2000 there has been little progress toward the sanitation target DFID wishes to develop a 'sanitation' programme that will operate in support of country governments, donor partners, civil society and research and development stakeholders to help achieve the more coverage of sanitation, to improve peoples' health and facilitate better opportunity for economic growth.

2. Diarrhoea, globally kills as many children under 5 as malaria, HIV/AIDS and TB combined. The prevention of diarrhoea centres on sanitation, hygiene and water management, issues which cut across the both a growth and health agenda.

3. The International Development Committee report 'Sanitation and Water' acknowledged this and stressed especially the need for greater involvement of DFID in the field of sanitation. In its response, the Government has welcomed this emphasis and has since committed ₤95 million per year for 2007/8 for the water and sanitation sector in Africa, an amount which is to more than double in 2010/11 to ₤200 million. There seems to be a general agreement that more needs to be done on sanitation, by DFID, and by the international community as a whole, and research is needed to focus and maximise the potential of those investments, especially how to design effective sanitation programmes. Further research is needed in this area.

4. The DFID consultation on water, sanitation and integrated water resources management, on 17th July 2007, brought together experts from different fields and organisations to input towards helping shape DFID's policy within the sector. When the participants were asked to identify DFID's comparative advantages over other international donors, DFID's long commitment to sanitation research was noted. This past commitment was also highlighted by the IDC report which referred to DFID's support for research into the Community-Led Total Sanitation approach. The report encouraged DFID to continue to support the study of this and other approaches, such as social marketing, that can improve the uptake of sanitation.

The objectives of this assignment are to identify programme content and implementation modalities and production of project documents of a CRD/DFID programme to improve sustainably the health and livelihoods of poor and vulnerable people by increasing access to sanitation for urban and rural communities, thus improving health and stimulating pro-poor growth. It is envisaged that this will be achieved by disseminating and mainstreaming best practice in policy and appropriate technology whilst improving knowledge and research capacity.

Stage 1
A report setting out the programme options and recommendations including delivery mechanisms (to include the SPLASH EUWI ERANET option) and a draft A 4 page concept note, to DFID Blue Book guidelines outlining the relevance and potential of the proposed programme.

Stage 2
Project documents to enable the DFID approval of the programme as per DFID's corporate requirements, including the proposed governance and implementation details.

Water Research Into Use (RIU) Scoping Study

Mon, 19 Jan 2009 09:03:00 GMT

Current DFID's new Research Strategy commits its Central Research Department (CRD) to undertake research that will contribute the achievement of the hardest to reach Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). MDG 7 (Environmental Sustainability) targets include halving the proportion of people living without water and sanitation. Since the goals were agreed in 2000 there has been almost no progress toward the sanitation target and only limited progress on the water target. Despite significant investment by DFID and other donors in water and sanitation research, much of the knowledge and information produced is unused. To contribute to correcting this DFID wishes to develop a 'research-into-use' programme that will operate in support of country governments, donor partners, civil society and research and development stakeholders to help achieve the MDGs in Water and Sanitation, for the support of economic growth. The objectives are to identify programme content and implementation modalities and production of project documents of a DFID programme for enabling research outputs to be used. The subject area will be water, sanitation and hygiene research for developing countries. The programme will enable the promotion and adoption of outputs from DFID's EngKaR programme and wider DFID experience where there are specific issues of policy relevance.

The expected outputs are:

Stage 1
A report setting out the programme options and recommendations including delivery mechanisms (to include the SPLASH EUWI ERANET option) and a draft A4 page concept note, to DFID Blue Book guidelines outlining the relevance and potential of the proposed programme.

Stage 2
Project documents to enable the DFID approval of the programme as per DFIDs corporate requirements, including the proposed governance and implementation details.

The camera never lies: children's views of health in their communities

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 01:00:00 GMT

Young Lives children hosted a photo exhibition in Addis Ababa for the Day of the African Child

DFID seeks research fellows to design and execute research programmes

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 01:00:00 GMT

Notification of forthcoming appointment opportunities at the Department for International Development (DFID) for senior research fellows

Boost for African science

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 01:00:00 GMT

African science has received a boost with the announcement of a £3.3 million partnership between the Leverhulme Trust and the Royal Society to fund collaborations between scientists in Ghana, Tanzania and the UK

Cutting diarrhoeal diseases in the rural poor of Bangladesh

Thu, 29 May 2008 01:00:00 GMT

A Health Impact Study Baseline Survey, conducted by Institute of Cholera and Diarrhoeal Diseases and Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) looked at water use, sanitation and behaviour in poor rural areas of Bangladesh. Hand washing before eating food could cut incidence of diarrhoea by half in poor households in Bangladesh

SPLASH reviews national programmes on water research for developing countries

Fri, 23 May 2008 01:00:00 GMT

The European Union Water Initiative European Research Area Network surveys programmes relating to water research for developing countries and identifies good opportunities for future joint programmes

SecureWater: Building sustainable livelihoods for the poor into demand responsive approaches. Inception phase.

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 10:58:00 GMT

Completed This research project will bring together two development approaches in order to achieve more sustainable poverty elimination through water supply improvements. A sustainable livelihoods (SL) framework (see http://www.odi.org.uk/ rpeg/srls/html) - to understand the nature of poverty at a household level and best practices for its elimination - will be used to inform and assist in the move towards more demand-responsive approaches (DRA) in water supply development. A need for better understanding of the water-poverty links has been highlighted in recent years in the increasing focus on poverty elimination amongst many ESAs and national governments. The challenge is to build a better understanding into the work of all participants involved in water supply development. Of particular importance is how to assist in the development of water for productive purposes at a household level, a key to which is understanding how and where water is used as part of natural capital in the livelihood strategies of poor households, thus understanding demand properly in order to respond to it. Understanding this micro-level use of water entails achieving a holistic understanding mirrored at a higher level by the recent global emphasis on integrated water resources development at the basin level. Hitherto, water supply has been closely linked to the achievement of health benefits through its integration with sanitation and hygiene promotion. Whilst the importance of this integrated approach is acknowledged, its limitations in terms of addressing broader water-livelihoods linkages in understanding at household-level are recognised. Significant issues surrounding sanitation and livelihoods will be a subsidiary focus of this research. To increase understanding anong interveners in the water sector of water livelihoods links, enhancing their capacity to eliminate poverty in demand responsive approaches. A concept paper, incorporating literature review.

An inception report, incorporating research methodology framework, collaborative arrangements and dissemination plan.

Five case studies on water and livelihoods, and one on sanitation and livelihoods in an urban context, in versions adapted for different capacity building contexts.

Sustainable livelihoods-based tools developed for decision-support, monitoring and demand assessment tools to contribute to pro-poor sectoral decision making.

Forum established for institutional collaboration to develop sustainable financing mechanisms and appropriate technological choice for poor communities.

Dissemination of research findings, tools, training materials, through broadcast video, electronic media, journals oriented to interveners as well as to the research community.

The Global Engineer

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 01:00:00 GMT

A new publication entitled: The Global Engineer: Incorporating global skills within UK higher education of engineers, produced by Engineers Against Poverty and the Development Education Research Centre of the Institute of Education has been launched

Research and capacity building in reproductive and sexual health and HIV/AIDS in developing countries

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 14:40:00 GMT

Current Reversal of the spread of HIV/AIDS is one of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Failure to achieve this goal will jeopardise other MDGs on poverty eradication, education, and maternal and child health. Success depends critically on improving access to effective interventions for those who are particularly vulnerable to infection (e.g. the poor). Access may be improved and protective behaviour increased through a number of strategies: e.g. mass communication of safe sex messages, together with social marketing of products such as condoms and STI diagnostic tests; provision of integrated SRH and HIV services which decrease stigma and thereby increase uptake; and provision of more effective biomedical interventions which can bring improved diagnostics and preventive technologies to all sections of society. Consortium partners have a long history of working in each of these areas. To support a research programme that will strengthen the evidence base to enable policy makers to identify and prioritise interventions that will improve reproductive and sexual health and reduce HIV incidence among economically poor populations in Africa and Asia. Strategies for behaviour change.

Integration of SRH and HIV services.

New biomedical tools.

Two large community randomised trials measuring the effectiveness of school-based and peer-led adolescent SRH interventions in Tanzania (Mema kwa Vijana study) and Zimbabwe (Regai Dzive Shiri study) have shown that young peoples knowledge about how to prevent HIV increased, and that these effects were sustained for at least 5 years. However, the interventions did not lead to a reduction in HIV, other STIs or unplanned pregnancies. These results will be important in guiding the future direction of HIV prevention activities for young people. The two studies communicated their results simultaneously in several fora including with national and international policy makers and researchers and have proven very influential in shaping the WHO Adolescent and Child Health Departments strategies for curbing HIV incidence in young populations.
A study commissioned by the National AIDS Control Programme in Pakistan, funded by DFID Pakistan and conducted by LSHTM researchers and collaborators from Pakistan shed much-needed light on the health and behaviour of populations often neglected or persecuted, in South Asia and elsewhere. The research has shown that violence, abuse and discrimination are commonly experienced by sex workers and injecting drug users, and can increase the likelihood of HIV and sexually transmitted infections. A future HIV epidemic is likely to be concentrated in those with highest levels of STIs and the highest levels of abuse transgender sex workers. Our research has also shown that policy recommendations targeted at transgender sex workers will have little support among society, and will be difficult for the government and public sector to implement, but they could be implemented successfully by NGOs, with donor funding and support.
As a result of our published evaluations which showed that the new point-of-care (POC) diagnostic dipstick tests for syphilis perform well in screening programmes for pregnant women, these tests were made available at discounted prices through the WHO bulk procurement programme. In 2009, a decision was made to use them for antenatal screening in Ghana, and they will now being rolled out nationally to all antenatal clinics in the country. In Tanzania, our results encouraged the government to agree to introduce one of POC test as a demonstration project, which we will evaluate. The Brazilian government has also decided to use them for screening hard-to-access populations in the Amazonas Region, following several evaluations which we conducted in the region.

Implementing Quality Education in Low Income Countries (EdQual)

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 10:40:00 GMT

Current

EdQual seeks to open up the black box of schools and classrooms to identify educational processes that constitute quality teaching and learning and create quality schools. The RPC uses comparative cross-national qualitative methods of action research and case study to identify effective teaching and leadership practices and strategies that can be implemented in existing conditions. These are complemented with secondary data analysis of a large dataset on school quality, which will identify indicators of quality relevant to the African context. Most of EdQual's research is conducted in sub-Saharan research, the world region with the lowest enrolment ratios and achievement rates. EdQual involves policy makers and practitioners in determining research priorities and in designing practical solutions.

EdQual's five large scale projects focus on:

Teaching and learning of science and mathematics with new curricula in South Africa, Rwanda and Pakistan
Use of ICTs to enhance teaching and learning of science and mathematics in Rwanda and South Africa
Transition in language of instruction and use of bilingual language strategies in Tanzania
Leadership and management of primary schools for quality improvement in Ghana and Tanzania
Identifying indicators of education quality relevant to the sub-Saharan African context through secondary analysis of the SACMEQ (Southern and East African Consortium for Monitoring Education Quality) II dataset.

Themes that cut across all projects are:

Raising gender awareness
Meeting the needs of disadvantaged learners
Developing strategies for remote and overcrowded learning contexts
Empowering teachers as reflective practitioners
Developing the capacity of partner institutions in Africa to become centres of excellence in one of the five project areas.

To generate new knowledge to assist governments in low income countries and international aid agencies to implement basic education initiatives that will improve the quality of education in ways that will benefit the poorest people in the world and will promote gender equality. 1. Have developed new knowledge and a set of indicators for assessing the quality of education in sub-Saharan African countries. With the move towards greater access in education, quality is increasingly an issue. Fed into discussion for DfID white paper. To be targeted at African governments once work is complete.

2. Have developed resources to assist policy makers and practitioners in designing and implementing new curricula in science and mathematics in South Africa, Rwanda and Pakistan. These have targeted the need to develop critical thinking and problem solving skills and have ben taken up by Gauteng department of Education in South Africa.

3. Have developed resources to assist policy makers and practitioners to make best use of available ICTs to improve learning outcomes in science and mathematics in Rwanda and South Africa. Teachers are unprepared to make optimum use of ICTs that already exist. Take up by teacher trainers in Rwanda.

4. Have developed resources to assist policy makers and practitioners improve levels of language and literacy in the mother tongue and language of wider communication in Tanzania and Ghana. This is to address limited capacity in teaching in mother tongue and in language of wider communication. Take up by teacher trainers in Tanzania and Ghana.

5. Have developed resources to improve the effectiveness of school leadership in Ghana and Tanzania. Leaders are unprepared to cope with challenges of implementing education MDGs. Findings being developed into toolkit for dissemination across Ghana/ Tanzania with Ministry support.

Production and distribution of electronic training materials

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed Provide free access to current and readily updateable healthcare information and training materials for health workers through electronic distribution on CD-ROM. Provide opportunities for Southern partners to exchange experience and distribute their own health information without cost. Provide service for other NGOs to distribute health information and training materials on CD-ROM through their own networks. Recipients gave the first CD an enthusiastic welcome and the demand for copies has been great, indicating that this project is filling a broadly felt gap. Below is one among many comments received after the first CD-ROM was sent: Dr CJC Igboanusi - Paediatric Registrar - Nigeria "I got a copy of your CD-ROM from a friend of mine and immediately fell in love with it. It is so useful and educative especially for those of us here in the developing world where access to current medical literature is very difficult and unaffordable. It is a masterpiece." CD-ROMs are clearly an effective and appropriate means of distributing important information and overcome for many the problem of lack of Internet access and the lack of up-to-date medical/health textbooks and journals. The e-talc project is helping to fill the vacuum of health information that health workers operate within in the South. There is a desire by many NGOs north and south to distribute health information as widely as possible to those who can use it, without cost or restriction. TALC is now making this possible. To date 4 issues of the e-talc Health Development CD-ROM have been produced and distributed. After initial promotion of the CD-ROM, awareness of it has grown quickly. From the growing demand and from feedback received from users we are aware that many health workers have access to a computer and can make use of this material. Users have made a particular point of stating that this format is much more useful than the internet; most

either have no access to the Internet or find accessing it very difficult and costly - a situation that is unlikely to change for a long time.

A survey of users found the following: more than 75 % said they had access to a computer less than 5 years old. Over 95% found all or some of the material of direct benefit. More than 90% said the CD-ROM was very easy to load and the instructions for use easy to follow. A similar proportion said the search engine facility was also useful and easy to use. Over 90% printed off some of the material for reference purposes. More than 75% share the CD-ROM with colleagues. Feedback has been extremely positive and users have stated that the content is meeting a need.

The CD-ROMs are being used by a wide variety of health workers in a wide variety of fields including the following:

HIV/AIDS workers, doctors, surgeons, community health workers, pharmacists, physiotherapists and occupational therapists, lecturers and teachers, nurses and midwives, medical and nursing students, clinical officers, medical laboratory technicians, environmental health officers, paediatricians.

Fields of interest of the users include:

TB and HIV/AIDS, women and child health, surgery, anaesthetics, community health, teaching, pharmacology, research, midwifery, water and sanitation, disaster relief, nutrition.

Zimbabwe Community Health Club Strategy - Assessment of potential replication in Uganda, Kenya and Zambia.

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed To investigate the possibilities of replicating the AHEAD (Applied Health Education and Development) approach in other African countries.

Civil society learning and advocacy project

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed Develop approaches and capacity of local & international civil society to influence and engage in watsan PSP processes for improved services to poor communities

Contractual toolkits private sector water and sanitation

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed To fund a one month input for a regulatory consultant from the London School of Economics and contribution towards the travel and accommodation costs of seminar and/or the holding of steering group meeting London

Marketing Urban Sanitation in Tanzania

Thu, 23 Nov 2006 01:00:00 GMT

Sanitation marketing is an innovative and cost-effective approach for accelerating demand and uptake of basic hygienic sanitation, reaching large numbers of people in Tanzania within a short period of time

Promoting Composting as a Business for the Urban Poor

Tue, 11 Apr 2006 01:00:00 GMT

An environmentally-friendly way to deal with waste...