Multi-country study focused on urban poor in Africa

Countdown is conducting a series of analysis workshops to understand RMNCH in 10 African cities

Recent survey data suggests that progress toward the targets of the sustainable development goals related to maternal, newborn and child health in several cities in sub-Saharan Africa has been lagging.To understand this issue more thoroughly, the Countdown and APHRC have initiated a multi-country study that includes 10 cities with a focus on the poor. The participating countries are Burkina Faso (Ouagadougou), Cote d’Ivoire (Abidjan), Ghana (Accra), Kenya (Nairobi), Mali (Bamako), Senegal (Dakar), Uganda (Kampala), Tanzania (Dar es Salaam) and Zambia (Lusaka).

In each country, research is led by a national team of academics and ministry of health experts, supported by a global and regional team of facilitators. Since May 2021, regular multi-country workshops are conducted to ensure cross-site harmonization and learning.

The first phase of the study focuses on secondary data analysis of surveys, routine health facility information systems and other data sources, synthesis of existing literature, geospatial analysis to locate informal settlements and analysis of demographic characteristics of the city’s poor.

The cities project is an extension of the Countdown country collaborations that aim to strengthen country analytical work in the context of annual reviews of progress and performance of the health system for women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health.