There is hardly any doubt that failing health systems result in poor health outcomes and hamper progress towards the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Universal Health Coverage (UHC). In Africa, health systems are hobbled by leadership and governance challenges, extreme shortages of health workers, corruption in procurement systems for medical products and technologies, poor information systems, and health financing constraints. This brief discusses ways in which decision-makers can hurdle these challenges.
Attribution: Daniel Mwai & Theresa Ndavi, “What Ails Health Systems in Africa? An Economic Perspective,”
ORF Issue Brief No. 431, December 2020, Observer Research Foundation.
Introduction
Most African countries gained independence between the 1950s and 1960s. In order to build their economies, import substitution policies were encouraged as a conduit for economic growth and industrialisation. Advocates of import substitution argued that developing
Taiwan bars shipments due to to high pesticide content
December 22, 2020
TAIPEI – Several imported food items, including tea and coffee beans, were blocked at Taiwan’s borders recently, after they were found to contain excessive residues of pesticide and other contaminants, the country’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said Tuesday.
The 23 items that failed safety inspection included a 3-kilogram shipment of green tea powder from Japan, branded as Maccha, which was imported by Taipei-based Sunrise Logistics Co., Central news agency (CAN) quoting the FDA as saying.
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The tea was found to contain 0.08 parts per million (ppm) of the insecticide thiacloprid, in excess of the maximum allowed residue level of 0.05 ppm, the FDA said.