The Residua of Health Programs in Sub-Saharan Africa
Posted: 5/25/2020 (CSDE Seminar Series)
This Friday, Rachel Robinson from the American University’s School of International Service will present on the residua of health programs in Sub-Saharan Africa. In her research, Robinson finds that all health programs have residua: the side-effects that ripple outwards during implementation or after the program is finished. These residua may then influence other health programs, either enabling or hindering them. Drawing from examples of health programs implemented in sub-Saharan Africa—family planning, HIV/AIDS, polio, and Ebola—Robinson’s research uses theories of path dependence, policy feedback, and social capital to develop a framework of health program residua and draws two main conclusions, which Robinson will present at the seminar. First, when designing or revising health programs, donors and other implementing organizations should take into consideration the residua of previous health programs, which may either serve as resources or obstacles. Second, donors and governments should invest in structural interventions that address the social determinants of health, rather than vertical programs that narrowly focus on one disease, in order to increase the odds of positive residua.
Date: 05/29/2020
Time: 12:30 - 1:30 PM
Location: Virtual via Zoom