University of Benin: Leading a Regional Centre of Excellence in Reproductive Health Research and Innovation

Presentation Format Development Challenge addressed by ACE Academic and Research Programs Regional Student Plan Industry/Sector Partnership Sustainable Financing Plan Implementation Arrangements Procurement Arrangements

West Africa: A Region with Contradictions High population growth with huge youth budge Rich mineral resource, with high economic growth rate Yet high rates of poverty and underdevelopment Political instability, climate change and rising sectarian tension pose great threats to the region

Comparative Health Indicators Between WA Countries and Sweden Nigeria Ghana Sweden Population Growth Rate % 2.8 2.2 0.7 Fertility Rate 5.5 4.1 1.9 Contraceptive Prevalence Rate 10.5 23.5 78 Maternal mortality rate 630 350 4.0   Neonatal mortality rate 48 28 2.0

Poor Health Indicators: A developmental challenge in WA The WHO has estimated that it would take Nigeria up to 150 years to reach the same level of health indicators with those of Western countries. The relevant question is: How can West Africa accelerate the pace of change to ensure that they reach this goal sooner than later? The answer lies in fostering and integrating the reproductive health approach to overall development

Definition of Reproductive Health A state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity of the reproductive system – WHO The Constellation of methods, techniques and services that contribute to RH and well-being. It includes sexual health, designed to enhance the quality of life and personal relations: ICPD POA, 1994

Components of Reproductive Health (1) Family Planning counselling, information, education, communication and services Prevention and management of infertility Safe motherhood, including the prevention of perinatal, infant and under-five deaths Prevention and management of unsafe abortion and its consequences

Components of Reproductive Health (2) Prevention and treatment of reproductive tract infections, including STIs and HIV/AIDS Prevention and management of gender-based violence, including female genital cutting, and human sex trafficking Management and prevention of genital tract cancers Information and research on human sexuality, reproductive health and responsible parenthood

RH: Decades of Slow Progress in Africa Unfortunately, slow progress was made in many countries between 1994 and 2014 in the adoption and uptake of these principles Africa still has the highest rates of adverse reproductive health outcomes – high fertility rates, high rates of HIV, and gender-based violence These are contributing to the region’s under-development and poor human development indices.

Why has RH been slow to take effect in Africa? Poor integration of RH into regional developmental agenda Low capacity to carry out RH interventions Poor country ownership, with RH agenda driven by international interests Limited understanding of RH and the lack of political will to make effective policies and take decided actions

Post-ICPD Sustainable Development Agenda Country ownership in RH policies and programming Strengthening the capacity of countries to carry out research and innovation in RH that address their specific needs Building and sustaining RH leaderships Building political commitments to address RH

Centre of Excellence in RH Research and Innovation (CEHRI): Program Goals To act as a training hub for the next generation of leaders in RH in West Africa. To stimulate indigenous research and innovation in RH needed to drive policies and programs in the region To mobilize local, regional and international support for improving RH in WA

CERHI’s Key Strategic Objectives Improve regional capacity to deliver high quality training in RH Increase capacity to carry out applied research in RH in the region Build and use industry/sector partnerships to enhance impact of the Center on social development Strengthen regional and international academic partnerships to raise quality of RH education in other institutions in the region. Enhance governance and management to support the integration and implementation of the program.

Four Key Activities of CERHI Develop improved governance infrastructure (including fund raising and financial governance) for project sustainability Review and development of curricular for short courses, bachelors, MSc and PhD in 9 different courses across 6 WA partner institutions Improve teaching and learning facilities and related capacity building in RH courses; Purchase and improve capacity for basic, operations, intervention and translational research in RH

CERHI Departments and Courses Short term courses BSc, MBBS MSc , M.Phil or MPH PhD/MD/Post-Doc Medicine Yes - Fellows and MDs Public Health Reprod Health Nursing RH Physiology Med Biochem Reprod. Anatomy Medical Lab Scs Med Sociology Hlth Economics Reprod Hlth Law

Plan for attracting Regional Students and Faculties Strategic communication of CERHI’s activities Interactive online platform available on admission of students and scholars Scholarships to support the admission of students Establishment of International Students hostel & intl Scholars Residential Area Provision of bilingual facilities

CERHI’S Academic Partners Regional University of Benin University of Ibadan Ahmadu Bello University University of Ghana Nigerian Institute for Medical Research University of Benin, Cotonou

CERHI’s Academic Partners International University of Aberdeen Harvard School of Public Health University of California, Berkeley University of Ottawa, Canada Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists World Health Organization

Collaborating Sector Planners Ministries of Health, Education, Women Affairs and Finance National Universities Commission National Planning Commission, National Bureau of Statistics and National Population Commission International and Local Development Organizations (e.g. UN organizations, bilaterals and multilaterals, Foundations, Dangote, TY Danjuma, etc) Industry – e.g. General Electric Civil Society Organizations

4 Activities for Externally Sustained Funding Resource mobilization Committee Friends of CERHI Fund Funding Mobilization from Alumni Capacity building of staff and PG students in Grant Proposal writing and research fund-raising

4 Activities for Achieving the Quality Benchmarks (DLI) M&E committee and training of Desk officer Key officials to follow up on the implementation of the DLIs ICT platforms to drive the implementation and achievement of the DLIs Collaborative ownership of the project by partner institutions, with continuous feedback provided

Key selected Disbursement Linked Indicators (selected DLIs) Baseline- 2013 Projected for 2017 New/revised RH Courses  0 34 # Partnership Agreements 20 New PhDs New Masters New Short courses 18 104 270 510 1,200 # of published Articles  20 80 External Revenue $8.0 Million

3 Success Factors/Innovative Features of CERHI It’s focus on RH and integration into development – a neglected field in WA It’s potential to leverage funds from diverse local and international sources It’s multi-disciplinary focus, enabling it to build high level collaboration and partnerships, for achieving ground-breaking discoveries

CEHRI Core Values and Principles Collaborative Partnership and Joint Project Ownership Transparency and Accountability “Can Do Spirit” as epitomized by timely results reporting Forward-looking commitment