Education
Schooling Trends in Africa: New Assessment Methods Needed
At least 37 million young people aged 10–14 in sub-Saharan Africa will not complete primary school, according to a recent analysis conducted by Population Council demographers Cynthia B. Lloyd and Paul C. Hewett. Moreover, nearly 21 million children in this age range in sub-Saharan Africa have never attended school. In April 2000, at the World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal, sub-Saharan African governments, along with others from around the world, recommitted themselves to achieving “Education for All” by 2015. The Population Council assessment suggests that meeting this target will be difficult. Much needed are an international commitment to a greater level of resources, better tools for monitoring educational progress at the country level, and a focus on reaching the poorest families.
Biomedical Research
Carraguard May Block HIV by Adhering to Cells
HIV may be ferried deep into the body from the vagina by immune system cells known as macrophages, suggests new research conducted by Population Council virologist David M. Phillips and his colleagues. The research also showed that the Council’s lead candidate microbicide gel, Carraguard®, is effective at reducing this form of HIV transmission in lab animals. The Population Council is preparing to enter into large-scale efficacy clinical trials to test Carraguard’s efficacy in blocking HIV transmission in 4,000 non-pregnant women. The microbicide candidate will be one of the first products of its kind to enter this advanced phase of research.
Female Genital Cutting
Potential Data Biases in Studies Exposed
Female genital cutting (FGC), also known as female circumcision and female genital mutilation, has been the topic of much research and attention in the past ten years. Investigators seek to learn the prevalence of the procedure in a certain area, to ascertain the determinants of the practice, and to verify the effects of interventions aimed at reducing the incidence of the custom. Findings from a recent study conducted by the Population Council, however, suggest that results of such investigations should be interpreted with caution. Women interviewed about FGC may falsely deny or falsely confirm having undergone the procedure.
Operations Research
Enhancing HIV/AIDS Care in South India
As of 2002, nearly 4 million adults in India were infected with HIV, according to UNAIDS; the number of new HIV infections in India is rapidly increasing; and the health care system is experiencing a substantial growth in the demand for services. To address this challenge, the Population Council’s Horizons program began collaborating with the International HIV/AIDS Alliance in September 1999 to examine the experiences of the Y.R. Gaitonde Centre for AIDS Research and Education, a nongovernmental organization based in Chennai, India, that provides a range of successful prevention, care, and support services for people with HIV/AIDS. The organization wanted to expand services in Chennai as well as introduce their style of services to organizations in four other locations in India. This Horizons study includes components focusing on clients’ quality of life and satisfaction with services, institutional costs, clients’ willingness to pay for services, and the effect of treatment costs on clients’ budgets. To investigate these issues, the researchers used client surveys and in-depth interviews, personnel training and assessment, and the development of case studies for each location.
Aging
How Long Will We Live? Demographers Refine Estimates
Estimates of current life expectancy at birth are routinely provided by national and international statistical agencies and are important to policymakers because they measure progress in lowering a country’s overall level of mortality. The United Nations Population Division publishes estimates of life expectancy for all countries in the world, ranging from a low of 37 years in Sierra Leone to a high of 80 years in Japan for the period 1995–2000. These numbers may be overestimated by up to a few years in contemporary countries with high life expectancy, say two demographers who have analyzed past and future trends in mortality. In a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, John Bongaarts, vice president and director of the Population Council’s Policy Research Division, and Griffith Feeney, an independent consultant, question the accuracy of underlying calculations that generate life expectancy figures, identify a distortion in the calculations, and provide a formula to amend the figures.
Reproductive Health
Investigating IUD Demand in Ghana and Guatemala
As the longest-acting method of reversible contraception available, the intrauterine device (IUD) has long been considered one of the most effective and cost-effective of contraceptive options. When researchers and policymakers in Ghana and Guatemala noticed a drop in IUD use over the past few years, they wondered why. Had the method gained a bad reputation, were clients poorly informed, was the quality of services poor? Although the recent teams were working separately, their findings point to the same explanations: lack of knowledge among providers and clients, logistical problems, and cumbersome clinic guidelines. Myths and rumors also surrounded the method, with both providers and potential clients misinformed about the IUD’s side effects and contra-indications.
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