the aid library

LIST OPTIONS

Filter

3146

Guidance for managing ethical issues in infectious disease outbreaks

World Health Organization (WHO) (2016) C_WHO

Infectious disease outbreaks are periods of great uncertainty. Events unfold, resources and capacities that are often limited are stretched yet further, and decisions for a public health response must be made quickly, even though the evidence for decision-making may be scant. In such a... more

Download (112)

View PDF (86)

Health for All – transforming economies to deliver what matters: Final report of the WHO Council on the Economics of Health for All

World Health Organization (WHO) (2023) CC

The Council was established in late 2020 by Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (Director-General, WHO) to provide new economic thinking – reassessing how health and wellbeing are valued, produced and distributed across the economy. An all-female group of 10 distinguished economists and area experts, t... more

Download (151)

View PDF (110)

Africa’s Health Financing in a New Era

Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) (2025) CC

Africa’s health sector is facing an unprecedented financing crisis, driven by a sharp decline of 70% in Official Development Assistance (ODA) from 2021 to 2025 and deep-rooted structural vulnerabilities. This collapse is placing immense pressure on Africa’s already fragile health systems as ODA ...is seen as the backbone of critical health programs: pandemic preparedness, maternal and child health services, disease control programs are all at risk, threatening Sustainable Development Goal 3 and Universal Health Coverage. Compounding this is Africa’s spiraling debt, with countries expected to service USD 81 billion by 2025—surpassing anticipated external financing inflows—further eroding fiscal space for health investments. Level of domestic resources is low. TThe Abuja Declaration of 2001, a pivotal commitment made by African Union (AU) member states, aimed to reverse this trend by pledging to allocate at least 15% of national budgets to the health sector. However, more than two decades later, only three countries—Rwanda, Botswana, and Cabo Verde—have consistently met or exceeded this target (WHO, 2023). In contrast, over 30 AU member states remain well below the 10% benchmark, with some allocating as little as 5–7% of their national budgets to health. In addition, only 16 (29%) of African countries currently have updated versions of National Health Development Plan (NHDP) supported by a National Health Financing Plan (NHFP). These two documents play a critical role in driving internal resource mobilisation. At the same time, public health emergencies are surging, rising 41%—from 152 in 2022 to 213 in 2024—exposing severe under-resourcing of health infrastructure and workforce. Recurring outbreaks (Mpox, Ebola, cholera, measles, Marburg…) alongside effects of climate change and humanitarian crises in Eastern DRC, the Sahel, and Sudan, are overwhelming systems stretched by chronic underfunding. The situation is worsened by Africa’s heavy dependency with over 90% of vaccines, medicines, and diagnostics being externally sourced—leaving countries vulnerable to global supply chain shocks. Health worker shortages persist, with only 2.3 professionals per 1,000 people (below the WHO’s recommended 4.45), and fewer than 30% of systems are digitized, undermining disease surveillance and early warning. Without decisive action, Africa CDC projects the continent could reverse two decades of health progress, face 2 to 4 million additional preventable deaths annually, and a heightened risk of a pandemic emerging from within. Furthermore, 39 million more Africans could be pushed into poverty by 2030 due to intertwined health and economic shocks. This is not just a sectoral crisis—it is an existential threat to Africa’s political, social, and economic resilience, and global stability. In response, African leaders, under Africa CDC’s stewardship, are advancing a comprehensive three-pillar strategy centered on domestic resource mobilization, innovative financing, and blended finance. more

Download (316)

View PDF (564)

Operational Guidance Mental Health & Psychosocial Support Programming for Refugee Operations

UN High Commissioner for Refugees UNHCR (2013) C1

This operational guidance on MHPSS provides a practical orientation and tools for UNHCR country operations. It covers specific points of good practice to consider when developing MHPSS programming and offers advice on priority issues and practical difficulties, while also providing some background i... more

Download (296)

View PDF (321)

Averting risks to the food chain

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS FAO (2019) C2

As the number of transboundary pest and animal and foodborne disease outbreaks rises, so does the number of people who are chronically hungry due to these and other factors. The correlation can be explained by the link between our health and that of the planet. We rely on land and sea for the produc... more

Download (255)

View PDF (404)

Medical device donations: considerations for solicitation and provision. Second edition

World Health Organization WHO (2024) CC

Medical devices are used for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of illness and diseases and for rehabilitation. WHO developed guidance on medical device donation in 2011, which has been now reviewed, with new evidence, new references on considerations for medical device solicitation and provisi... more

Download (342)

View PDF (518)

Climate change and communicable diseases: a manual for health workers

World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe (2011) C_WHO

There is a broad consensus nowadays that the Earth is warming up as a result of greenhouse gas emissions caused by anthropogenic activities. It is also clear that current trends in the fields of energy, development and population growth will lead to continuous and ever more dramatic climate change. ... more

Download (1225)

View PDF (3242)

Hazardous Waste Management In Tsunami-Affected Areas

World Health Organization (2004)

External Link

Preparedness Planning

IFRC - International Federation of Red Cross Red Cresent Societies (2000) CC

External Link

Community Preparedness: REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH and GENDER

Women's Refugee Commission (2015) C2

This provisional Facilitator's Kit provides a complete framework for a 3-day training on Community Preparedness for Reproductive Health and Gender. The goal is to build community capacity to prepare and respond to risks and inequities faced by women and girls during emergencies.

Download (1088)

View PDF (2736)

Predisaster Activities

World Health Organization (2004)

Download (500)

View PDF (1703)

Shock-Responsive Social Protection Systems research: Case study—Lesotho

Kardan, A., O’Brien, C. and Masasa, M. Oxford Policy Management (2017) C2

Download (1816)

View PDF (1966)

Global Burden of Disease GBD Profile: Senegal

Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (2013) C1

Download (1131)

View PDF (1632)

Social and Behavior Change Communication for Emergency Preparedness Implementation Kit. Worksheets

USAID; Health Communication Capacity Collaborative The John Hopkins University (2017) C1

This I-Kit provides essential information and tools for responding to an outbreak using an SBCC approach. It presents a series of nine units, each accompanied by exercise worksheets to help link the SBCC theory to practice. The worksheets in each section are typically followed by a completed exam... more