AFRO-NETS> News-letter-What's new at the Environmental Health Project

["Campbell, Dan" <CampbellDB@ehproject.org>]

News-letter-What's new at the Environmental Health Project
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Dear Colleagues:

Welcome to the first issue of "What's New at EHP," a monthly  E-
newsletter of the USAID sponsored Environmental Health Project.

The E-newsletter is intended to keep EHP staff, partners, clients and
colleagues informed of EHP happenings and activities, new EHP publications
and reports, and upcoming meetings and conferences related to environmental
health. This issue as well as previous issues of What's New can also be
accessed on our web site at http://www.ehproject.org

Questions and comments about our project or this E-newsletter are very
welcome.  To subscribe, please send an email to
mailto:info@ehproject.org

IN THIS ISSUE:

*NEW FEATURE ON THE EHP WEB SITE

*IMPROVING EFFECTIVENESS OF NATIONAL MALARIA CONTROL PROGRAMS

*URBAN CONGOLESE CREATE HEALTHIER NEIGHBORHOODS

*CASE STUDIES ON DECENTRALIZATION OF WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION IN
LATIN AMERICA

*BLOOD LEAD LEVELS IN CALLAO, PERU

*FIFTH WSSCC FORUM IN IGUACU

*NEW REPORT ON WS&S LAUNCHED BY WHO/UNICEF

*INTERNET 2001

*UPCOMING MEETINGS IN ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

***************************************

NEW FEATURE ON THE EHP WEB SITE

In this month's web update, we are introducing a new page on the EHP web
site: "EHP Activities." By clicking on appropriate links, you will get
information on where EHP is working and what it is doing. You will find
summary descriptions of the activities as well as links to available re-
ports related to the activities. To see this new feature "EHP Activities,"
which will be updated monthly, please click on
http://www.ehproject.org/live/ehp_activities.htm

  IMPROVING EFFECTIVENESS OF NATIONAL MALARIA CONTROL PROGRAMS

Historically, vector control has been a mainstay of national malaria
control programs, but increasing resistance to insecticides, high
costs, and wasteful practices have limited its effectiveness. Effective
vector control depends on using the right mix of interventions to fit
local conditions and vector ecology. Working with national malaria con-
trol programs in Nepal, Eritrea, and Mozambique, EHP is focusing on ca-
pacity building in collection, analysis, and use of data to strategi-
cally target control measures at the local level.  For example, im-
proved mapping of malaria cases in Maputo, the capital of Mozambique,
has helped local officials target their efforts in neighborhoods with
the greatest number of cases.  National malaria control program offi-
cials have requested USAID to expand EHP's assistance to cover the
Maputo metropolitan area and Mozambique's other five provincial capi-
tals. The case maps for Maputo have also revealed areas of intense
transmission where modest efforts at vector control may have a substan-
tial impact on malaria incidence; further investigations are planned
for the coming year.
For more information, please contact Gene Brantly
mailto:brantlyep@ehproject.org



URBAN CONGOLESE CREATE HEALTHIER  NEIGHBORHOODS

EHP is working with NGOs and the University of Kinshasa, School of Pub-
lic Health to build the capacity of community groups involved in im-
proving environmental conditions and health in urban areas of the De-
mocratic Republic of Congo. In one city, local groups and an interna-
tional NGO have teamed to overcome severe daily water shortages that
affect the population of 800,000 people. In Kinshasa, EHP, community
groups and NGOs are working together to reduce flooding and improve
conditions in public markets. Each project combines community partici-
pation, entrepreneurial business, infrastructure construction, and edu-
cation to improve child health. For information on this activity,
please contact Chris McGahey mailto:mcgaheyc@ehproject.org



CASE STUDIES ON DECENTRALIZATION OF WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION IN
LATIN AMERICA

EHP recently carried out six case studies on the decentralization of
water supply and sanitation services in Latin America. The case stud-
ies--focusing on small towns and rural communities-- were developed
around three themes. These themes, while distinct, represent three as-
pects of one major issue - the effect of reform and decentralization on
the less advantaged elements of the population.  The three themes are
as follows: -Role of small and medium-sized municipalities in service
provision: Each case study under this theme describes a different man-
agement model for providing services. The case studies were implemented
in El Salvador, Colombia, and Paraguay. -Institutional arrangements to
provide backup support to rural systems: Case studies carried out in
Honduras and Nicaragua under this theme address the question of which
institutional models can provide backup support to rural communities
after the systems are operational. -Effective regulation of municipal
services: This study provides an overview of the regulatory trends, de-
fines the issues that need to be addressed to establish a regulatory
structure, and includes a brief summary of eight experiences  with
regulatory reform in the region.  These case studies will be available
in February 2001 in English and in Spanish. Please contact
mailto:info@ehproject.org for information.



BLOOD LEAD LEVELS IN CALLAO, PERU

The General Directorate of Environmental Health (DIGESA) conducted a
baseline survey of blood-lead levels in Lima.  USAID/Peru supported the
study with technical assistance from EHP. The baseline study, conducted
in 1998-99, included 2,510 children, aged 6 months to 9 years, and 874
post-partum women living in Lima and the Province of Callao. The mean
blood-lead level in children was found to be 9.9 ug/dL.  Certain areas
of El Callao, however, showed alarmingly high levels of lead exposure.
Preliminary information gathered at the time of the study suggested
that exposure to lead originated from a large depository of mineral
concentrates located in the area where the highest levels were identi-
fied. Children's hand- mouth habits, combined with dusty playground ar-
eas, limited water supplies, and poor hand washing practices, contrib-
uted to children consuming significant amounts of lead from the dust
and soil.  The report summarizes activities undertaken to investigate
the sources, the results of those efforts and proposed next steps. This
new EHP Activity report is in Spanish, with an abstract in English.
(The file is 4, 205 KB.) The report can be accessed at:
http://www.dec.org/pdf_docs/pnack563.pdf

  FIFTH WSSCC FORUM IN IGUACU

The Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council  (WSSCC) held its
Fifth Global Forum in Iguacu, Brazil, in early December. Preliminary
activities leading to the Forum included a planning meeting in Montreal
(early September) and e- conferences (September and October). EHP staff
participated in the Montreal meeting, facilitated the e-conferences,
and attended the Iguacu Forum, which culminated in the draft Iguacu Ac-
tion Program (IAP). Advocacy will be a major plank for the IAP and will
focus on hygiene promotion, environmental sanitation, institutional
management options and public private partnerships, and community-
based, participatory and social marketing approaches. EHP plans to
partner with other Collaborative Council members and substantially con-
tribute to reaching Vision 21 in the areas of hygiene promotion, sani-
tation partnership, and monitoring and indicators. For more information
please send an inquiry to mailto:info@ehproject.org



NEW REPORT ON WS&S LAUNCHED BY WHO/UNICEF

The Global Water Supply and Sanitation Assessment 2000 report was
launched by WHO/UNICEF at the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative
Council (WSSCC) meeting in Iguacu, Brazil. The Assessment 2000 is the
result of an improved methodology for collection and analysis of na-
tional water supply and sanitation coverage data. The data in the As-
sessment came from nationally representative household surveys and fo-
cuses on consumer-based coverage and consumer use of services rater
than hardware construction. The Assessment estimates that 2.4 billion
people worldwide still do not have acceptable means of sanitation,
while 1.1 billion people do not have an improved water supply. Of note
is a change in the terminology related to coverage data in the Assess-
ment report.  Based on lack of information on the "safety" of the water
served to the population or the "adequacy" of sanitation facilities,
the terms "safe" and "adequate" have been replaced with  "improved" in
the report. EHP staff attended the PAHO regional meeting of the Ameri-
cas in Porto Alegre where the Assessment 2000 data related to the
Americas was extensively used in the presentations. The PAHO meeting
highlighted urban-rural inequities in water supply and sanitation cov-
erage in the Americas as well as inequities in coverage and diarrhea
prevalence based on income levels. The Assessment 2000 Report is avail-
able from the WHO at:
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/Globassessment/GlobalTOC.htm

  INTERNET 2001

In January 2001, a two-day meeting on "The Web and Beyond:  Harnessing
the Potential of IT for Improving Health" was held in Washington DC by
the Population and Health Materials Working Group. This Working Group
is composed of representatives from USAID-funded projects and cooperat-
ing agencies. Staff from the EHP Information Unit attended the meeting.
The purpose of the meeting was to share information on lessons learned
related to using the Internet and other communication technologies for
health information and training. Case studies from the field and work-
ing sessions on a range of IT issues were discussed as well as discus-
sions on future challenges facing the use of information technology in
development. For detailed information on discussions and presentations
from the conference, click on:  http://www.med.jhu.edu/ccp



UPCOMING MEETINGS IN ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

Listed below are upcoming meetings and conferences for February 2001:
*February 18-22, Dallas, Texas American Mosquito Control Association
Annual Meeting Texas, AMCA/Texas MCA. Hyatt Regency Dallas at Reunion
Web site: http://www.mosquito.org Phone: (800) 233-1234. *February 26-
28, Kampala, Uganda Regional Conference on Reform of the Wa-
ter/Sanitation Sector in Africa - Water Utility Partnership Web site:
http://www.wupafrica.org

For the complete list (covering meetings and conferences from January
to December 2001) click on our EHP web site at:
http://www.ehproject.org/live/MeetingAlert.htm

To subscribe, please send an email to mailto:info@ehproject.org

Posted By
Dan Campbell
mailto:CampbellDB@EHProject.org

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