AFIDEP @Afidep

It is just as vital to invest in decision-makers’ capacity to use evidence as it is to invest in generating the evidence itself. Dr Violet Murunga reflects on why strengthening evidence-use capacity matters for better decision-making.

The @Afidep will convene the Africa Integrity Indicators (AII) Round 13 Launch Dialogue and the launch of the Integrity Narratives 2026 Report in Nairobi, Kenya. Under the theme “Resilient Institutions & Oversight Mechanisms: Catalyst for Democratic Consolidation or Regression?” The event will bring together policymakers, government representatives, civil society, researchers, media, development partners, and governance experts to interrogate what the Round 13 data tells us about Africa’s governance trajectory. The event will also mark the official launch of Integrity Narratives 2026, the flagship AII report, presenting evidence on governance across Africa’s 55 countries. Date: 30 September 2026 Time: 9:00 AM–2:00 PM EAT Register through lnkd.in/dTKmVGBw to attend in person (if you are based in Nairobi) or virtually using this link bit.ly/4hvuQyp. Mark your calendar. Join the conversation. #AII13 #AfricaIntegrityIndicators #IntegrityNarratives

#WeAreHiring AFIDEP is inviting applications for two Postdoctoral Fellow opportunities under the Africa Think Tanks Platform (ATTP) Project. We are looking for researchers with strong analytical skills and experience in policy-oriented and applied research who are interested in contributing to evidence that informs policy and practice across Africa. Visit our website for more details: bit.ly/4gxp1Pj Application deadline: 25 September 2026 #IkoKaziKE #JobSearchMalawi

Today, on #InternationalDayOfDemocracy, we are reminded that democracy is not just about casting a ballot. It is also about accountability, access to information, independent institutions, freedom of expression, the rule of law, and citizens holding those in power to account. The Africa Integrity Indicators (AII) track these dimensions of governance across Africa, providing evidence on how democratic institutions and governance systems work in practice. Check the data here to see how democratic institutions are faring in Africa: bit.ly/4xKFlTH #AII13 #AfricaIntegrityIndicators

Don't miss out. GFF x CIVIC VOICES Launch - Happening in a few! @PATHtweets, @Afidep and the @OAYouthKenya are pleased to invite you to the official launch of the GFF × CIVIC VOICES consortium and a new funding opportunity for local civil society and youth-led organisations. Look out for @Afidep 's Senior Research and Policy Analyst, Dr Jackson Otieno, who will join PATH and OAY to unpack Domestic Health Financing and the role of CSOs and youth-led organisations. As countries face recurring fiscal constraints, AFIDEP's health financing and evidence-to-policy experience shows that when scarce public resources are converted into predictable, protected, and equitable financing for Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health & Nutrition (RMNCAH+N), we can transform lives. 🗓️ Date: Tuesday, September 15, 2026 🕒 Time: 15:00–16:30 EAT | 14:00 CAT/CEST | 13:00 WAT | 08:00 EDT Read more details and register here: shorturl.at/lspgN #GFFxCIVICPlatform #GlobalHealth #CivilSociety #YouthEngagement

📍Happening tomorrow! @PATHtweets, @Afidep and the @Oayouthkenya, are pleased to invite you to the official launch of the GFF × CIVIC VOICES consortium and a new funding opportunity for local civil society and youth-led organisations. 🗓️ Tuesday, September 15, 2026 🕒 3.00 – 4.30 pm EAT The GFF × CIVIC Platform, a partnership between the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF) and the World Bank Group’s Civil Society and Social Innovation Alliance (CIVIC), is investing in stronger, more meaningful, and sustainable engagement of civil society and youth-led organisations in health systems and decision-making to improve health and nutrition outcomes for women, children, and adolescents. The VOICES Consortium (Voices Organising for Inclusive Civic Engagement and Sustainability) brings together PATH, AFIDEP, and OAY to work across 22 GFF partner countries in Africa. ↘️To learn more, join the launch — register here: lnkd.in/ddRbFBih

🌍 A new opportunity ahead for civil society and youth organizations! Join the launch of GFF x CIVIC VOICES and learn how eligible local organizations can access new funding to strengthen their capacity and influence. 🔗Register: bit.ly/468h3HP #CivilSociety

Introducing VOICES (Voices Organising for Inclusive Civic Engagement and Sustainability), a new multi-country initiative strengthening the role of local civil society and youth-led organisations (LCYOs) in domestic resource mobilisation, health policy, and accountability, with a focus on Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health and Nutrition (RMNCAH+N). VOICES will be implemented across 22 African countries by a consortium led by PATH-led initiative, alongside @Afidep and @OAYouthKe with support from the @WorldBank's Global Financing Facility (GFF) and the World Bank CIVIC platform. We are mapping #CSOs/ #YLOs now. Help us spread the word! 🌍 Find more details here: shorturl.at/RtB5L #VOICES #CivicEngagement #YouthLed #RMNCAH #GlobalHealth

The relationship between climate change and health goes both ways. While climate change threatens our health and health systems, the health sector itself contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. Building climate-resilient health systems must therefore also include reducing their environmental footprint. Learn more in our position paper: bit.ly/4yp83dh

Climate change is increasingly affecting health and health systems across Africa, yet health-related initiatives receive less than 1 - 2% of global climate adaptation funding. AFIDEP’s desk review highlights inadequate financing as one of the key barriers to integrating health into climate policies and actions in Africa. Read our position paper to learn more: bit.ly/4yp83dh

This week, @Afidep , through the Learning Together to Advance Evidence and Equity in Policymaking (#LEEPS) Project, is co-hosting a Policy Engagement and Evidence Uptake Training for researchers from the Kenya Medical Research Institute (@KEMRI_Kenya) and the Clean Air Africa program. Held at KEMRI headquarters in Nairobi in partnership with its Knowledge Management Unit, the five-day training is equipping #researchers with practical skills to more effectively engage in policy processes and communicate their research findings. The training covers key areas, including understanding the policy process, the role of #evidence and the barriers and facilitators to its use; applying gender analysis to policymaking processes; conducting policy and stakeholder analysis; developing, monitoring and evaluating policy engagement strategies; and packaging and communicating research evidence for policy influence. Researchers are also getting hands-on experience in developing policy briefs and designing policy dialogues. After the workshop, researchers will receive technical support to guide them in organising their policy dialogues. The training is part of the #LEEPS partnership’s efforts to strengthen technical and institutional capacity to generate gender-disaggregated, intersectional evidence and effectively communicate and use the evidence to inform decisions and actions. These efforts aim to accelerate the achievement of the #SDGs in Africa, leaving no one behind. The partnership between @KEMRI_Kenya and LEEPS reflects the broader goal of fostering collaboration among institutions to advance evidence-informed and equitable policymaking in Africa, reduce fragmentation, and maximise impact. Furthermore, it directly contributes to strengthening KEMRI’s think tank role of helping solve development challenges in Kenya and beyond. @Ibukayo @arin_africa @MakerereIGDS @roseoronje

#WeAreHiring! AFIDEP is looking to recruit experienced professionals for a number of positions. Successful candidates will contribute to advancing AFIDEP’s work in research and project delivery, policy engagement and communications, and partnerships and resource mobilisation. For more information about the positions and how to apply, visit: bit.ly/4gxp1Pj 🗓️Application deadlines: Project Manager: 18 September 2026 Resource Mobilisation Officer and Communications, Policy and Engagement Officer: 25 September 2026 #IkoKaziKE #JobSearchMalawi

AFIDEP is now on Substack! Introducing African Development Perspectives. A platform where our experts share thought leadership reflections and perspectives on evidence-informed development issues shaping Africa’s development. Subscribe and follow to join the conversation: bit.ly/4qW4Q2x

Non-communicable diseases are responsible for 37% of deaths in Africa. If African countries could prioritise one area to accelerate the fight against NCDs, which should come first?

@Afidep , through the Learning Together to Advance Evidence and Equity in Policymaking (#LEEPS) Project, hosted a Research Communications & Policy Engagement Training in collaboration with Karatina University, bringing together their academic staff from various disciplines and departments to strengthen their capacity to translate research evidence into policy and practice. Held from 31 August - 2 September 2026, the training equipped #researchers with practical skills in #policy engagement, stakeholder analysis, strategic communication, messaging and policy brief writing. The sessions also focused on helping researchers identify key audiences and their interests, craft compelling evidence based messages and communicate their research in ways that can support policy change. During the training, researchers developed policy briefs, presented their work and received #feedback. This hands-on approach strengthened their ability to communicate research evidence to policymakers. The training also helped @KaratinaUniv kick off its Utafiti Dialogue Initiative supported by the National Research Fund, which aims to strengthen its Think Tank role - ensuring that the research and innovations it produces helps solves development challenges in Kenya and beyond. Broadly, the partnership aligns with the #LEEPS partnership collaborative approach to advancing #evidence and equity in #policymaking to achieve the #SDGs in Africa. @nrfkenya @Ibukayo @arin_africa @MakerereIGDS @roseoronje

DID YOU KNOW? In 2021, eight of the ten leading causes of death in the WHO African Region were non-communicable diseases (NCDs), up from just four in 1990. Over that same period, overall NCD-related deaths across Sub-Saharan Africa doubled. Africa is now facing a growing double burden of disease: Persistent infectious diseases alongside a rapidly rising burden of chronic conditions like cardiovascular disease. The health challenges are changing. Our policy responses and health financing must change with them. Read our Health Financing for Noncommunicable Diseases: Landscape Analysis of Practices and Challenges in the Sub-Saharan Africa Region for insights into the financing gaps and opportunities: afidep.org/publication/he… #DidYouKnow #NCDs #PublicHealth #HealthSystems #Africa

.@Afidep has partnered with @ndpcgh to operationalise MoU through a strategic, systems-strengthening initiative on Gender-Responsive Budgeting (GRB). This is a deliberate intervention designed to embed gender considerations into the very fabric of Ghana's national development planning framework, from Medium-Term Development Plans to Annual Progress Reports and district performance assessments. As Ghana begins implementing its 2026–2029 Medium-Term Development Plans, this poses a critical policy window to ensure gender-responsive approaches are built into planning, budgeting and monitoring systems from the outset, not added as an afterthought. Starting with the 29 Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) of Greater Accra, and Regional Planning Officers from all 16 administrative regions of Ghana, the approach is intentional in building capacity and institutional ownership. At the ongoing 3-day Workshop in Accra, each district will return with at least three senior officers mandated to embed the NDPC GRB Toolkit directly into the planning and budget documents they produce every year. AFIDEP’s role has been to: ➡️ Provide technical and logistical support ➡️ Co-develop training content with NDPC ➡️ Facilitate knowledge exchange, and ➡️ Document lessons that will inform a phased national scale-up. Evidence-to-policy practice ensures strengthened institutions, not just individuals as gender equity becomes embedded in how Ghana plans, budgets and delivers for its people. #GenderResponsiveBudgeting #EvidenceToPolicy #GhanaDevelopment #PublicFinancialManagement

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Non-communicable diseases — including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases — are already responsible for 37% of all deaths in Africa. This represents a major shift in the continent's health landscape. Yet the response has not always kept pace with the changing burden. Many countries continue to face gaps in NCD prevention, early detection, diagnosis, treatment, and long-term care. NCDs are not a future health challenge for Africa. They are a challenge we are facing now. Read the Landscape Study on NCDs in Sub-Saharan Africa: afidep.org/publication/he… #DataTuesday #NCDs #NonCommunicableDiseases #PublicHealth #Africa #EvidenceToPolicy

.@Afidep, in partnership with the National Development Planning Commission (@ndpcgh), is hosting a 3-day workshop. The workshop aims to address existing gaps and strengthen evidence-informed planning and policymaking, with a particular focus on integrating gender-responsive approaches into national planning and budgeting processes. @Afidep Research and Policy Analyst Dr @PetersonMaame is among the facilitators. 📆 Aug 31 to Sept 2, 2026 📍Accra, Ghana The training represents a strategic opportunity to move beyond awareness creation and toward the practical operationalisation of Ghana's Gender-Responsive Budgeting (GRB)Toolkit. Participants include district planning and budget officers with practical skills to apply the GRB Toolkit within their existing institutional mandates, the initiative will contribute to: 🔸stronger planning systems, 🔸improved accountability and, 🔸more inclusive development outcomes. It will also generate practical lessons and tested materials that can inform a phased scale-up of GRB capacity-building to MMDAs in the remaining regions of Ghana. #WEE, #GRB