Interviewee: Lee Wells, Director of External Affairs, Touch Foundation
Interviewer: Stephanie Hanson, News Editor, CFR.org
March 11, 2009
Sub-Saharan Africa faces a long list of public-health challenges, including a high incidence of HIV/AIDS, a shortage of trained doctors and nurses, and inadequate medical facilities. Lee Wells of the Touch Foundation says the organization's experience in a country facing all of these challenges, Tanzania, shows training of healthcare workers is particularly important. Such workers are needed for delivering effective HIV/AIDS and malaria programs as well as providing a broader medical infrastructure. Wells says Tanzania only has 1,200 doctors for a population of 40 million and needs another 80,000 healthcare workers to provide basic care according to World Health Organization estimates. He says training health workers in their home countries is a cost-effective approach; in Tanzania, it only costs $2,500 per year for a nurse's training.
Overall, the global health funds initiated by the Bush administration to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis have contributed billions of dollars for programs in sub-Saharan Africa. President Barack Obama's budget for fiscal 2010 calls for a $4.5 billion increase over last year's allotment for foreign aid. The current financial crisis has caused a downturn in private foundation support for global health aid. As a result, Wells says, U.S. health funding, which in Tanzania has amounted to over $800 million since 2003 to combat HIV/AIDS, is "more important than ever." However, he suggests more needy individuals would benefit from U.S. aid if Washington allowed a change in disbursement rules to permit funding for non-disease-specific health projects.
Terms of Use: I understand that I may access this audio and/or video file solely for my personal use. Any other use of the file and its content, including display, distribution, reproduction, or alteration in any form for any purpose, whether commercial, noncommercial, educational, or promotional, is expressly prohibited without the written permission of the copyright owner, the Council on Foreign Relations. For more information, write outreach@cfr.org.
Saudi Arabia on the Edge
A leading Middle East scholar pens this "good introduction to the Saudi paradox of social change and political stability and an invaluable guide to the challenges the country faces." More
American Force
An investigation of the use of American force since the end of the Cold War. More
The Struggle for Egypt
A sweeping account of Egypt in the modern era: what Egypt is, what it stands for, and its relation to the world. More
Saudi Arabia in the New Middle East
Gause posits that, though the Arab Awakening has caused tensions in Saudi-American relations, the two countries do not face a crisis and still have significant mutual interests that should be prioritized.
Partners in Preventive Action
The authors assess the strengths and weaknesses of international institutions and provide a set of practical recommendations for how the United States can strengthen the global architecture for preventive action by partnering with those organizations.
Peter Navario writes, "the status quo is not likely to change until PEPFAR creates an incentive for partners to devote more resources and...
Anderson Cooper reports on a nutritional breakthrough.
Countries in sub-Saharan Africa lose billions of dollars each year through corruption, say analysts. Local and international efforts to...
Print
Email
Share