In The News
Summit Advances Progress Toward Child Wellness Institute
Accordia Global Health Foundation and the University of Malawi co-hosted the 2013 Summit on Child Wellness in Mangochi, Malawi from 28 to 30 October. The organizers convened experts from the University of Malawi, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Mzuzu, and many other universities from across Africa, North America, and Europe. The Summit also included senior representation from five Malawian ministries, various NGOs, and others stakeholders. The forum challenged participants to think differently about new multi-sectoral approaches to ensuring healthy, productive lives for children in resource-limited settings around the world.
Malawi's Minister of Health Catherine Gotani Hara opened the meeting with a statement of strong support for the initiative. Among her remarks, the Minister said, "I am very sure that in this room we have the collective capacity to secure brighter futures for our children if we bring ourselves together and fight for a common stand and focus."
"There is a clear need to establish a world-class institution to drive improvement in the health and well-being of children in underserved regions of the world," said David Greeley, president and CEO of Accordia Global Health Foundation. "Nearly all the research done on children takes place in North America and Europe, so too little is known about the world's most disadvantaged populations of young people."
Participants agreed that achieving child wellness in Malawi will require innovation and collaboration among all sectors of government, development, and civil society. There was consensus that health is a critical component of wellness, and equally vital are contributions from the fields of agriculture, education, technology, and many others. Experts emphasized that the ability to partner more effectively across sectors and disciplines could result in ground-breaking advances and new opportunities for children born today in Malawi.
Additional outcomes included the agreement that the institute will be created as a center of excellence within the university structure and, with time, will become a true knowledge center for East and Southern Africa. Once established, the center will help Malawi take a leadership position in the region, changing the way the world invests in Africa's children by designing and testing new multi-sector approaches to improving child wellness and ensuring improved access to innovative services for children throughout the country.
Following two days of deliberations, a smaller working group convened on Wednesday, 30 October to distill the Summit's proceedings and help establish the parameters of a detailed business plan that Accordia will complete before year end. On Thursday, organizers held a debriefing in Lilongwe for the global health community about the outcomes of the Summit and next steps in developing the institution.
The Malawi forum was the sixth in the Accordia Global Health Summit Series. Organizers are analyzing output and insights from the summit's deliberations to inform the shared vision and strategic plan for Accordia's proposed child wellness institute at the University of Malawi. Now stakeholders are turning their attention to raising funds for the center.
Accordia's work in Malawi is supported by Pfizer Inc, Michigan State University, Willow Springs Charitable Trust Foundation, Friess Family Foundation/Water Missions International, and The Sheila C Johnson Foundation.
Media Coverage:
- Malawi News Agency
- AllAfrica
