the aid library

Venezuela in crisis

Parker, J. (2019) CC

Economic and social unrest in Venezuela have led the health system to the brink of collapse. Infectious diseases are surging as a result. The Lancet Infectious Diseases Volume 19, ISSUE 1, P28, January 01, 2019

Trends in infant mortality in Venezuela between 1985 and 2016: a systematic analysis of demographic data

Jenny García, Gerardo Correa, Brenda Rousset (2019) CC

Lancet Glob Health 2019 Published Online January 24, 2019 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(18)30479-0 The health-care system collapse underway in Venezuela is a cause of utmost concern for its people and, increasingly, for the wider region ... more

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 o ... n 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

Venezuela’s Humanitarian Emergency

Human Rights Watch (2019) C1

Large-Scale UN Response Needed to Address Health and Food Crises This report is based on interviews with more than 150 health care professionals, Venezuelans seeking or in need of medical care who recently arrived in Colombia and Brazil, representatives from international and nongovernmental humani ... more

Born into War -1,000 Days of Lost Childhood (Yemen)

UN Children's Fund UNICEF (2018)

In Yemen, the poorest country in the Middle East, 3 million children have been born into horrific violence that has escalated since March 2015. Calling for the needs of Yemen’s children to be prioritized, UNICEF’s “Born into War” report reminds involved parties of their legal obligations t ... more

WHO's Response to the Ukraine Crisis. Interim Report. February to June 2022

World Health Organization (WHO) (2022) C_WHO

The military offensive by the Russian Federation in Ukraine which began February 2022 has triggered one of the world’s fastest-growing displacement and humanitarian crisis, with geopolitical and economic ripples felt across the globe. The ongoing war has caused large-scale disruptions to the deliv ... more

COVID-19 in Yemen: preparedness measures in a fragile state

Dureab, F.; S. Al-Awlaqi and A.Jahn The Lancet (2020) CC

The Lancet DOI: 10.1016/S2468-2667(20)30101-8 WHO declared COVID-19 to be a pandemic on March 11, 2020. The pandemic eventually reached Yemen, with the first laboratory confirmed case announced on April 10. emen has structural vulnerabilities that have developed over a protracted period of conflic ... more

The political determinants of the cholera outbreak in Yemen

Jonathan Kennedy, Andrew Harmer, David McCoy (2017) CC

The Lancet Global Health, published online 18 August 2017; http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(17)30332-7 The article "The Political Determinants of the Cholera Outbreak in Yemen" examines how the ongoing civil war has contributed to Yemen’s severe cholera outbreak. The 2017 epidemic was des ... more

Peruvian Healthcare System: A Scoping Review

Alviz Ñahui, L.; Condori Huillca, M. L.; Luna Lazo, R. E.; et al. (2021) CC

The main objective of the health systems is to meet the health needs of the population in general, but for this the system must have adequate financing and supply support to cover the entire population in question and check quality, efficiency, equity services, safety and sustainability. However, co ... more

Yemen: Humanitarian Snapshot - Children’s situation in Yemen (October 2017). Arabic Version

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (2017) C1

The document presents a humanitarian snapshot from October 2017 highlighting the dire situation of children in Yemen. Over 11 million Yemeni children needed humanitarian assistance due to the conflict that began in March 2015. The report shows one child dying every 10 minutes from preventable causes ... more

Emergency medical care

WHOSEARO (2013) C_WHO

Training Manual for Doctors. Cardiac deaths are highest cause of death in Bangladesh. Trauma, burn, poisoning and snake bite are commonly encountered in the emergency room of a hospital. Road traffic injuries, fire, collapse of a building etc. are ... more

Encuesta Nacional de Hospitales ENH2018

National Assembly, Venzuela and Médicos por la Salud (2018) C1

The survey, conducted between March 1–10, 2018, assessed the performance of 104 public and 33 private hospitals in Venezuela. According to the figures, most laboratory services and hospital nutrition services are only available intermittently or are completely inoperative. Shortages of items such ... more

EU supports Venezuelan refugees, migrants and host communities

European Union EU (2019) CC

Humanitarian Action for Children 2022 - Yemen

UN Children's Fund UNICEF (2021) C_UNICEF