Policy Briefs
Malawi has made notable progress in reducing adolescent fertility over the past two decades. Education has played a key role in this progress, with girls who stay in school significantly less likely to experience early pregnancy. Recognised as a focus country in the Exemplars in ASHER project, Malawi offers important lessons for improving adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Download the full policy brief to explore the findings and recommendations for advancing adolescent health in Malawi.
This policy brief presents key findings of the Back on Track project’s assessment of Ethiopia’s progress towards achieving health-related SDG 3 targets. It highlights both national and subnational trends in maternal, neonatal, and child health service coverage before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. While national indicators showed resilience, regional disparities in antenatal care, skilled birth attendance, and family planning use remain stark—especially in conflict-affected northern areas. The brief calls for stronger governance coordination, improved data systems, and tailored interventions to sustain progress and close equity gaps. Click here to download
This policy brief presents key findings on Kenya’s progress towards achieving SDG 3 targets for maternal and child health. While improvements in immunisation and skilled birth attendance are noted, persistent challenges remain in maternal mortality and antenatal care coverage. The brief outlines subnational disparities, the limited impact of COVID-19 at the national level, and systemic issues such as health sector underfunding and coordination gaps. Click here to download
This policy brief presents key findings on Nigeria’s status as the furthest off track among the countries studied in achieving MNCAH-related SDGs. It highlights persistent high maternal mortality, low coverage of childhood vaccines and family planning services, and the impact of conflict, inadequate funding, and weak data systems. The brief provides recommendations for reversing this trend through increased domestic investment and targeted interventions in underserved regions. Click here to download
This policy brief presents key findings of the Back on Track project’s regional analysis of maternal, child, and adolescent health (MNCAH) progress across Ethiopia, Kenya, and Nigeria. It explores how the COVID-19 pandemic affected service delivery, widened subnational disparities, and slowed momentum toward achieving SDG 3. The brief offers data-driven recommendations for restoring progress and ensuring equitable access to essential health services. Click here to download
The African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP), in partnership Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), conducted a policy review and analysis on Kenyan national diagnostics policies and plans to strengthen health systems in the country. Click here to read more.
A study conducted by the Carolina Population Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP), explored the influence of religion and religious beliefs on the contraceptive decision-making of adolescent and young Christian and Muslim women in Kenya’s Mombasa and Wajir counties. To read more, CLICK HERE.
Family planning enables women to realize their reproductive rights and reliably control the timing, spacing and number of births. It is recognised as one of the most cost-effective health interventions for achieving many of the world’s development goals. Family planning also empowers women and girls socially and economically, and it boosts the national economy. Investment in family planning, therefore, is an investment in economic development. Download here:
Although Tuberculosis (TB) affects people of both sexes and all age groups, the highest-burden is in adult men, who accounted for 56% of all global TB cases in 2019. In Kenya, 66% of all cases notified with TB in 2020 were men. Policies on gender and TB should place greater emphasis on the high burden of TB among men and the need to invest in male-friendly diagnostic and screening services, with the aim of reducing undiagnosed TB. This compelling evidence necessitates development of policies that guide a gendered approach to resources and interventions to end TB.
A range of social factors can act to either exacerbate the health impacts of the environmental effects of climate change or to help mitigate them with public health interventions. These interventions are well articulated in policies that provide collective interventions affecting transformation in social welfare, social institutions and social relations. Kenya has an advanced legal framework and a suite of policies, strategies, plans in place to address climate change.
In January 2021, the Guttmacher Institute released the first comprehensive compilation of evidence about abortion incidence and safety in Sub-Saharan Africa overall, as well as in each of its four subregions (Eastern Africa, Middle Africa, Southern Africa, and Western Africa). In the report titled: From Unsafe to Safe Abortion in Sub-Saharan Africa: Slow but Steady Progress, the Guttmacher Institute provides an overview of the legality of abortion and describes how often and how safely abortions occur in the region’s 48 countries. It also offers an analysis of the underlying context of abortion—namely, unintended pregnancy and access to modern contraceptives. The reports estimates […]
L’avortement à risque est un problème persistant en Afrique subsaharienne (ASS). En janvier 2021, l’Institut Guttmacher a publié la première compilation complète de preuves sur l’incidence et la sécurité de l’avortement en Afrique subsaharienne. Dans un rapport intitulé : De l’avortement à risque à l’avortement sécurisé en Afrique subsaharienne : des progrès lents mais constants, l’Institut Guttmacher donne un aperçu de la légalité de l’avortement et décrit la fréquence et la sécurité des avortements dans les 48 pays de la région. Il propose également une analyse du contexte de base de l’avortement, à savoir la grossesse non désirée et l’accès […]