Network launches Learning Workshop series for new National Commissions

The NCDI Poverty Network has launched a series of Learning Workshops to share analytical tools and lessons from experience with seven new countries that are joining the Network in 2021 – Benin, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, and Nigeria.

Representatives of all seven countries participated in the first virtual Workshop on March 17, which focused on methods and tools for “Measuring the NCDI burden of disease and socioeconomic disaggregation.” They were joined by members of the Kenya and Uganda Commissions, both of which have completed the first phase of the Commission process, as well as Dr. Mohamed Ould Sidi, NCD Director of WHO AFRO’s Intercountry Support Team for West Africa.

The webinar began with introductions from all participants, including an official opening from Dr. Santigie Sesay of the NCDI Poverty Network Steering Committee and an introduction from Steering Committee Co-Chair Dr. Gene Bukhman. Participants heard from Matt Coates of the NCDI Poverty Network Secretariat regarding different approaches to measuring burden of disease and disaggregating by socioeconomic status. 

The group was then joined by Dr. Gladwell Gathecha and Dr. Joseph Kibachio of the Kenya NCDI Poverty Commission, and Dr. Ann Akiteng and Dr. Dan Kajungu of the Uganda NCDI Poverty Commission, who shared their respective countries’ experience using nationally available data sources. 

Finally, the group heard from Matt Coates again as he gave a brief overview of the use of the Global Burden of disease (GBD) tool, before participants divided into two working groups to explore using the GBD website themselves. 

Following the success of the first National Commission Initiator’s Workshop in Dubai, UAE, in December 2018, the Network team has developed these virtual sessions to replicate the 4-day workshops into a set of 4-5 virtual webinars. The second webinar in the series will occur in the coming weeks and will be focused on “review of essential package of health services or health service norms and standards and assessment of facilities”