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For decades, scholars from the Global North have written the disability script from their own perspective, writing it for persons with disabilities and for disability scholarship in the Global South. A mould has been broken and African scholars have now begun re-writing the script from their own perspectives and from the Global South's perspective. Using Decolonial Theory and the systematic review method, the paper is based on the work of Professor Tsitsi Chataika, which has impacted disability scholarship from an African context and from the Global South at large. The work contributes extensively to disability scholarship in terms of disability conception, disability theory, disability policy and inclusion of persons with disabilities in society and of students with disabilities in higher education in African countries. The scholar shifts the narrative from writing disability scholarship from the Global North to the South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Millions of people living with disabilities in Africa already face a heightened risk of poverty, which will likely be exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic unless interventions to address its social and economic impacts are disability inclusive. This paper draws on research on health and living circumstances of people with disabilities in Africa in the context of human and disability rights as enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). The paper also explores the pathways through which the current pandemic may increase the risk of poverty amongst people with disabilities, such as loss of income from disruptions to work, particularly in the informal sector, and higher future spending and productivity losses from disruptions to health care and other key services (e.g., rehabilitation, assistive devices). It also explores how social and economic responses to contain and respond to the pandemic should consider and be inclusive of the needs of people with disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The UNCRPD is an international treaty that promotes the advancement of the rights of persons with disabilities. This scoping review aimed to map the evidence on strategies employed by countries in implementing the UNCRPD in Africa and the implementation challenges faced. Method: The PRISMA extension for scoping reviews (PRISMA-Scr) was used in this study. Key terms pertinent to the implementation of the UNCRPD in Africa were used to search for literature. Strict eligibility criteria were set and a qualitative data extraction template developed. Two reviewers worked independently to extract and chart data into data extraction forms. An analysis of country reports was also conducted to identify relationships between the African country reports and findings from the studies included in the scoping review. Inductive reasoning enabled the generation of themes. A total of 107 sources were initially retrieved and after a process of screening and exclusion, 31 sources (11 research papers and 20 country reports) were included for inductive analysis. Results: The study revealed evidence of implementation of UNCRPD in Africa, albeit limited, especially to the area of education, and employment. However, there are unique contextual limitations in implementation of UNCRPD in Africa. The country reports reflected similar implementation issues to those identified in studies selected for this paper. Conclusion and Implications: This calls for African governments to broaden focus on implementation of other articles of the UNCRPD in order to create inclusive societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Co-occurring substance use and other mental health disorders are prevalent among adolescents who access mental health services and substance abuse treatment, reflecting the growing recognition of multimorbidity across all healthcare settings. Young people with concurrent disorders have substantial issues with their mental health as well as their substance use behavior. This makes it difficult for them to function on a daily basis. Objectives: The goal of this systematic review is to review the extent of mental illness and substance use comorbidity in East Africa. Methods: This systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted in line with the PRISMA guidelines. We conducted a search of 5 bibliographic databases (PubMed, science direct, Cochrane library, AAU repository, and Google scholar) from 2005 until December 2023. The results of eligible studies have been summarized descriptively and organized by three broad categories including: studies evaluating the epidemiology of substance use among mentally ill patients, studies evaluating the epidemiology of mental illness among substance use and studies evaluating the epidemiology of comorbidity of substance use and mental illness. The quality of the included studies was assessed with Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality tool. Result: Among the 15 eligible studies, eleven focused on examining the extent of mental illness in individuals with substance use, while nine explored the prevalence of substance use among those with mental illnesses. Almost all articles were published by male researchers. Ten studies delved into the coexistence of substance use and mental illness. Limited research has been conducted on the epidemiology of severe mental illness, perinatal mental illness, hallucinogen use, injectable drug use, and prescription medication. Vulnerable populations, including pregnant women, children, and individuals with physical disabilities, have been inadequately represented. Conclusion and recommendations: The majority of studies indicated there was a significant burden of alcohol use and depression disorder in the adult population. Prioritizing integrated approaches within all rehabilitation centres is crucial to addressing the distinctive needs and challenges encountered by individuals with mental illness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Malaria continues to be a public health problem despite past and on-going control efforts. For sustenance of control efforts to achieve the malaria elimination goal, it is important that the most cost-effective interventions are employed. This paper reviews studies on cost-effectiveness of malaria interventions using disability-adjusted life years. Methods: A review of literature was conducted through a literature search of international peer-reviewed journals as well as grey literature. Searches were conducted through Medline (PubMed), EMBASE and Google Scholar search engines. The searches included articles published in English for the period from 1996 to 2016. The inclusion criteria for the study were type of malaria intervention, year of publication and cost-effectiveness ratio in terms of cost per DALY averted. We included 40 studies which specifically used the DALY metric in cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) of malaria interventions. Results: The majority of the reviewed studies (75%) were done using data from African settings with the majority of the interventions (60.0%) targeting all age categories. Interventions included case treatment, prophylaxis, vector control, insecticide treated nets, early detection, environmental management, diagnosis and educational programmes. Sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine was the most common drug of choice in malaria prophylaxis, while artemisinin-based combination therapies were the most common drugs for case treatment. Based on guidelines for CEA, most interventions proved cost-effective in terms of cost per DALYs averted for each intervention. Conclusion: The DALY metric is a useful tool for determining the cost-effectiveness of malaria interventions. This paper demonstrates the importance of CEA in informing decisions made by policy makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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There is need for the study of disability among Indigenous people. Indigenous knowledge is not whole without the study of disability within. Too much emphasis only on what the Indigenous people know or what they do differently may further subjugate knowledge about how disabled people resist their marginality. Societal discrimination of disabled people among the Indigenous African people can only be addressed when their voices are heard or when they make themselves visible as it is in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Oral disorders are still a major global public health challenge, considering their perpetuating and chronic nature. Currently, there is no direct index to measure the quality of care on a population scale. Hence, we aim to propose a new index to measure the quality of care for oral disorders worldwide. Methods: We generated our database using the data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study 2017. Among different variables such as prevalence, incidence, years lived with disability, and disability-adjusted life years, we utilised principal component analysis (PCA) to determine the component that bears the greatest proportion of information to generate the novel quality of care index (QCI) for oral disorders. Results: Global QCI for oral disorders gradually increased from 1990 to 2017 (from 70.5 to 74.6). No significant gender disparity was observed during this period, and the gender disparity ratio (GDR) was considered optimal in 1990 and 2017. Between 1990 and 2017, the age-standardised QCI for all oral disorders increased in all the SDI regions. The highest QCI for all oral disorders in 2017 belonged to high-middle SDI countries (=80.24), and the lowest YLDs rate was seen in the low SDI quintile. In 1990, the quality of care in European, Central Asian, and Central and South American countries was in the lowest quintiles, whereas the North American, East Asian, Middle Eastern, and some African countries had the highest quality of dental care. Maynmar (=100), Uganda (=92.5), Taiwan (=92.0), China (=92.5), and the United States (=89.2) were the five countries with the highest age-standardised QCI. Nicaragua (=41.3), Belgium (=40.2), Venezuela (=38.4), Sierra Leone (=30.5), and the Gambia (=30.3) were the five countries with the least age-standardised QCI values. Conclusion: The quality of care for all oral disorders showed an increasing trend on a global scale from 1990 to 2017. However, the QCI distribution was not homogenous among various regions. To prevent the exacerbation of imminent disparities in this regard, better attention to total tooth loss in high-income countries and prioritising primary healthcare provision in low-income countries are recommended for oral disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Religion and philosophy follow the Hegelian dialectic, man as thesis, evil as antithesis and ideal man or God the final synthesis, locking out persons with disability stating that they don't meet the criteria of being human persons. In contrast, persons with disability were accepted in ancient Africa and their disorder was not shown as a physical handicap. Objectives: The objective of this article was to critically examine how disability is constructed in philosophy and religion in comparison with African culture, in the shaping of disability identity as a form of humanity. Method: This article undertook a document review of both grey and peer reviewed literature. The papers reviewed were identified and screened for relevance, then analysed with the aim of comparing the portrayal of disability in philosophy, religion and ancient Africa. Results: Our analysis revealed that African cultures revered the disability identity, as opposed to philosophy and religion that portrayed it as abnormal. A person with disability was accepted in ancient Africa and given a visible role in society suggesting their integration in daily life activities while their disability was believed to be a blessing from the gods. Conclusion: Religion and philosophy have incredibly alienated persons with disabilities with linguistic and derogative identities. Whereas African spiritualism inherently glorified and/or approved disability, in today's Africa, persons with disability are increasingly objectified and abused because of ignorance and harsh economic conditions. Nevertheless, the contemporary mistreatment of people with disabilities (PWDs) does not reflect a true African culture but is a symptom and a consequence of the material and economic injustice that PWDs encounter. Keywords: disability; identity; philosophy; African; religion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that the concept of popular participation has been seriously eroded by the pervasiveness of electoral violence in Nigeria due to the nature and characters of political elites as electoral violence has contributed to increase in the number of internally displaced people and person with disability and impacted negatively on the entire socio-economic and political wellbeing of internally displaced persons, people with disability and the nation at large. Thus, this presentation provides: a conceptual clarification, an examination of the history of electoral violence in Nigeria, an investigation of the causes of electoral violence, clarify the place of internally displaced person and people with disabilities within the concept of popular participation in Nigeria, and study suggests ways on how to move forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Persons with disability run the danger of not profiting from the development process due to exclusion from basic services and opportunities. Still, the knowledge base on exclusion mechanisms is relatively weak and there is a danger that important aspects are not addressed as they are hidden behind established understandings that are not critically scrutinised. Objectives: The main purpose of this article was to highlight critical thoughts on prevailing knowledge of the relationship between disability and poverty, the policy base for addressing the rights of persons with disability, and culture as a key component in continued discrimination. Method: This article aimed at integrating three papers on the above topics presented at the 2011 African Network for Evidence-to-Action on Disability (AfriNEAD) Symposium. The researchers have therefore thoroughly examined and questioned the relationship between disability and poverty, the influence of policy on action, and the role of culture in reproducing injustice. Results: The article firstly claims that there are limitations in current data collection practice with regards to analysing the relationship between poverty and disability. Secondly, ambitions regarding inclusion of persons with disability in policy processes as well as in implementation of policies are not necessarily implemented in an optimal way. Thirdly, negative aspects of culture in discrimination and bad treatment of disabled need to be highlighted to balance the discussion on disability and culture. Conclusion: A critical view of prevailing understandings of disability and development is key to producing the knowledge necessary to eradicate poverty amongst persons with disability and other vulnerable groups. Not only do we need research that is actually designed to reveal the mechanisms behind the disability-poverty relationship, we need research that is less tied up with broad political agreements that is not necessarily reflecting the realities at ground level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence suggests that people with disabilities are the most marginalised and vulnerable group within any population. However, little is known about the extent of inequality between people with and without disabilities in contexts where the majority of persons experience extreme poverty and hardship. This includes in Liberia, where very little is understood about the lives of disabled people in general. This study uses a multidimensional wellbeing framework to understand perceived relative inequality associated with disability by assessing several facets of wellbeing across and within households containing disabled members (N = 485) or households with no disabled members (N = 538) in Liberian communities (Total individuals surveyed, N = 2020). Statistical comparisons (adjusted for age, sex, education and wealth differences and clustered at the household, village and county level) reveal that disabled Liberians are managing similarly to non-disabled Liberians in terms of income and education, but experience many perceived relative inequalities including in life satisfaction, transport access, political participation and social inclusion. Our results further suggest that disability may lead to perceived relative inequality at the household level in terms of trust held in neighbours. However, they also show that being the head of a household may protect against perceived relative inequality in certain dimensions (e.g. healthcare and transport access, political participation) irrespective of disability status. Results are discussed in terms of practical implications for development efforts in Liberia and for disabled people in other low- and middle-income settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Gastrointestinal and liver diseases (GILDs) are major causes of death and disability in Middle East and North Africa (MENA). However, they have different patterns in countries with various geographical, cultural, and socioeconomic status. We aimed to compare the burden of GILDs in Iran with its neighboring countries using the results of the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study in 2010. METHODS Classic metrics of GBD have been used including: age-standardized rates (ASRs) of death, years of life lost due to premature death (YLL), years of life lost due to disability (YLD), and disability adjusted life years (DALY). All countries neighboring Iran have been selected. In addition, all other countries classified in the MENA region were included. Five major groups of gastrointestinal and hepatic diseases were studied including: infections of gastrointestinal tract, gastrointestinal and pancreatobilliary cancers, acute hepatitis, cirrhosis, and other digestive diseases. RESULTS The overall burden of GILDs is highest in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Egypt. Diarrheal diseases have been replaced by gastrointestinal cancers and cirrhosis in most countries in the region. However, in a number of countries including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Egypt, and Yemen, communicable GILDs are still among top causes of mortality and morbidity in addition to non-communicable GILDs and cancers. These countries are experiencing the double burden. In Iran, burden caused by cancers of stomach and esophagus are considerably higher than other countries. There is an overall overestimation of liver cancer and underestimation of other gastrointestinal and pancreatobilliary cancers. The diseases that are mainly diagnosed in outpatient settings have not been captured by GBD. CONCLUSION Improving the infrastructure of health care system including cancer registries and electronic recoding of outpatient care is a necessity for better surveillance of GILDs in MENA. In contrast to expensive treatment, prevention of most GILDs is feasible and inexpensive. The health care systems in the region can be strengthened for prevention and control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. Strategies for injury prevention have been extensively studied in developed nations but not in the developing world. This study sought to determine which mechanisms of injury were common in a rural developing area and which were important contributors to mortality and disability. Methods. All 614 patients admitted for injuries to a rural African hospital between 1987 and 1991 were analyzed retrospectively for mechanism of injury and outcome, as assessed by mortality and long-term functional status. Results. The leading mechanisms of injury were transport related (29%) and burns (16%). Burns accounted for 61% of injuries in children under 5 years. Mortality was 7.3% in the series, with 24% of deaths owing to transport injuries. Disability developed in 103 (22%) of the 462 survivors available for assessment, with most disability resulting from transport injuries (26% of all disabilities), burns (13%), and agricultural injuries (14%). Conclusions. Among injured patients who presented for treatment in this rural developing area, the largest burden of mortality and disability was from burns and transport-related injuries. Population-based studies are needed to substantiate whether these should be priorities for injury prevention efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]