Health
ASLM Director Seeks More Focus on Africa’s Laboratory Professionals
By Dipo Olowookere
An expert in the health sector has stressed the urgent need to give priority to laboratory professionals in Africa by coming up with new initiatives and partnerships aimed at training, mentoring and certifying them.
Director of Science and New Initiatives, African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM), Dr Pascale Ondoa, argued that this is very necessary since laboratory professionals play a vital role in the identification of diseases, ensuring the reliability of laboratory investigations and reporting laboratory findings to the clinicians for timely and adequate patient management.
According to Dr Ondoa, who currently serves as senior laboratory scientist at the Amsterdam Institute for Global Health and development (AIGHD), ASLM is committed to raising the profile and importance of laboratory professionals on the African continent, hence the relevance of the forthcoming ASLM conference in Abuja.
“Admittedly, the only interaction that patients have with the laboratory is when their blood is drawn, or other specimens collected for testing. While the role of the laboratory professional cannot be over emphasised, unfortunately due to the public’s limited exposure to them, their value is often overlooked.
“We cannot deny that medical laboratories are an essential part of disease detection, control, prevention and surveillance, as well as response to outbreaks. Unfortunately, most laboratories in Africa are not only poorly resourced but also stretched, liming their capacity to operate effectively,” she said.
Averring that the situation of a high incidence of inadequate and unqualified laboratory professionals in Africa has become a source of great concern with long-term consequences, Dr Ondoa explained that inadequate resources and limited diagnostic services jeopardise the quality of patient care resulting from wrong diagnosis and consequent under/over treatment of the disease, noting that this has a negative impact on the continent both socially and economically.
“Investing in a robust, well-trained and dynamic laboratory workforce in Africa will facilitate the delivery of diagnostics services to over a billion African citizens, advancing universal health coverage and global health security,” Dr Ondoa added.
Last year, the Coordinating Council for the Clinical Laboratory Workforce in the United States identified some of the challenges in the laboratory sector that hampered recruitment and retention efforts.
Some of these issues were: lack of visibility of the profession, low salary increases, poor wages compared with other healthcare professions and a lack of career advancement opportunities. Sadly, Africa faces similar issues on a much larger scale, coupled with a huge infectious disease burden on the continent.
For any headway to be made in the laboratory medicine sector, Dr Ondoa suggested that the conversation about changing Africa’s laboratory workforce should involve educational institutions as much as laboratory leadership and governance.
“The magnitude of the current shortage of laboratory professionals and reasons for staff attrition are often not properly documented at the country level.
“There are several questions that need to be addressed, such as the demand for laboratory professionals to be equivalent to the number of biomedical graduates and how they are being trained for new technologies and emerging service needs,” she said.
The viro-immunologist with years of experience in HIV also emphasized that there should be discussions around roles and responsibilities of the various categories of the laboratory workforce, requirements for each role, scope of clinical laboratory workers and the key factors affecting the development of this workforce.
“To address some of these issues, ASLM contributes to in-service and pre-service training initiatives, as well as raising awareness about the need to develop a harmonised framework for the certification of laboratory professionals.
“The fact of the matter is increasing the number and improving the skills of the laboratory workforce on the continent is critical, especially as the need for technology-driven health services continues to increase on the continent,” she concluded.
The African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM) 2018 Conference will hold in Abuja from December 10-13, 2018 and the theme of the conference is, ‘Preventing and Controlling The Next Pandemic: The Role of The Laboratory.’
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has suspended its planned nationwide indefinite strike, granting the federal government a two-week ultimatum to address lingering welfare issues affecting resident doctors across the country.
The decision was taken after an emergency meeting of the association’s National Executive Council on Tuesday, where members reviewed assurances from government representatives and resolved to give dialogue another chance.
NARD said the suspension was informed by “progress made” in negotiations, particularly commitments on the prompt payment of salary arrears, hazard allowances, and steps toward resolving issues surrounding the Medical Residency Training Fund.
The association did not declare a full resolution of the dispute. It noted that the government had shown “renewed willingness” to address the concerns that triggered the strike threat.
The association noted that while these engagements signalled a willingness by the government to resolve the dispute, several critical issues remain outstanding, particularly the delayed payment of promotion arrears, salary arrears, the 2026 Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF), and the backlog of 19 months’ professional allowance arrears owed to resident doctors.
It also expressed concern over the Federal Government’s decision to halt the implementation of the reviewed PAT, which had earlier triggered widespread dissatisfaction among its members and raised fears of disruption to healthcare services nationwide.
Despite these unresolved issues, NARD said it opted to suspend the strike as a demonstration of goodwill and commitment to ongoing dialogue, while giving the government a two-week window to take concrete, measurable and verifiable steps to meet its demands.
The association insisted on the immediate reversal of the decision affecting the PAT, payment of all outstanding arrears, prompt disbursement of the MRTF, and full settlement of the accumulated professional allowance backlog.
It warned that it would reconvene at the expiration of the ultimatum to assess the level of compliance and determine its next course of action, adding that failure by the government to meet its demands within the stipulated timeframe would result in the resumption of the suspended strike without further notice.
NARD also called on its members nationwide to remain calm, united and resolute, while urging the Federal Government to act swiftly to prevent a potential crisis in the health sector.
The association further appreciated the interventions of the Vice President and other stakeholders, expressing hope that their involvement would lead to the timely resolution of the dispute and help sustain healthcare delivery across the country.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
To expand affordable healthcare in Kenya, Swedfund has invested about $600,000 into Jacaranda Health Limited (Jacaranda Maternity) to support innovations in neonatal intensive care and strengthen Jacaranda’s ability to provide life-saving services to underserved populations.
Jacaranda Maternity provides high-quality maternal health care at more affordable pricing than typical private providers, focusing on women in Nairobi’s low- and middle-income communities.
The new funding will support the opening of new hospitals, upgrading of neonatal care, and improvements to existing facilities.
Maternal and newborn health outcomes in Kenya remain a challenge, with maternal mortality still high despite improvements in skilled birth attendance.
Public health facilities play a central role but face capacity constraints, while access to reliable, quality care varies across regions and income groups.
Private healthcare providers offering essential maternity services at accessible price points can complement public provision.
Jacaranda Maternity aims to expand its network to six hospitals to achieve financial sustainability while scaling its impact. The healthcare provider is a recognised leader in promoting women’s health, with 71 percent of its staff being women, and a track record of effective environmental and social management.
“This investment will help Jacaranda Maternity provide life-saving care to more women and families while furthering Swedfund’s mission to promote inclusive and sustainable healthcare,” a Senior Investment Manager at Swedfund, Audrey Obara, said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria will get a $350,000 intervention from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) to support its response to the ongoing outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (bird flu) and strengthen the country’s animal health systems.
An agreement was reached on Wednesday during a strategic meeting between the Minister of Livestock Development, Mr Idi Mukhtar Maiha, and the FAO Representative to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States, Mr Hussein Gadain, in Abuja.
The intervention, approved under FAO’s Technical Cooperation Programme, will support disease containment efforts in 11 affected states and enhance surveillance, coordination and response mechanisms to prevent further spread of the disease.
Speaking during the meeting, Maiha said effective disease control remains critical to improving livestock productivity and protecting the livelihoods of farmers across the country.
He explained that factors such as drought, scarcity of feed, interaction between livestock and wildlife, as well as cross-border movement of animals have contributed to the spread of diseases in some areas.
“We must continue to strengthen our animal health systems and build the capacity required to respond effectively to disease outbreaks. Our collaboration with FAO will help protect livestock assets, improve productivity and support the broader transformation of the sector,” the minister said.
Mr Gadain commended the federal government’s commitment to the development of the livestock sector and assured that FAO would continue to provide technical support to Nigeria.
He stressed the need to strengthen veterinary services at the state and community levels, improve early detection of diseases and promote biosecurity practices among livestock farmers.
The meeting also reviewed progress on the global campaign to eradicate Peste des Petits Ruminants, a highly contagious disease that affects sheep and goats.
To advance the initiative, the ministry plans to convene a national technical meeting involving veterinary institutions, researchers and practitioners to review Nigeria’s eradication strategy and address gaps in vaccine supply.
As part of preparations, the ministry will engage the National Veterinary Research Institute to assess its vaccine production capacity while exploring other options for vaccine procurement to meet national demand.
Both parties also agreed to accelerate Nigeria’s access to financing under the Pandemic Fund through the One Health approach in collaboration with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and the Federal Ministry of Health to strengthen preparedness and response to zoonotic diseases.
Plans are also underway for the Director-General of FAO to participate in the Antimicrobial Resistance Conference scheduled for June 2026 in Abuja, where President Bola Tinubu is expected to be recognised as the African Champion for the eradication of Peste des Petits Ruminants.
The meeting further agreed to inaugurate a Livestock Donor Working Group to coordinate development partner support and advance key initiatives, including the development of a national feed and fodder strategy aimed at improving productivity and sustainability in the livestock sector.
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