Global Health Advocacy Incubator

Our revamped website is officially live! We've spent months revamping our website to make it easier for global health advocates to learn how our advocacy approach works, access advocates' stories, explore our resources and see the progress from a decade of advocacy efforts worldwide. Dive into our: ✔ Case studies from around the world that showcase the road to policy—and impact—in action. ✔ Advocacy tools—covering an array of focus areas, including budget advocacy and the use of law, research and media. ✔ Programs—offering a comprehensive overview of our geographical reach and the impactful work we're involved in. ✔ Team! Our advocacy experts work across disciplines in more than 40 countries. They are passionate about driving positive change and work tirelessly for healthier futures. And more! Your turn: https://lnkd.in/e9aVRVu7

Today is #WorldDrowningPreventionDay.   236,000 people lose their lives to #drowning every year. It is one of the leading causes of death among children aged 5-14 in the world, and over 90% of drowning cases occur in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in rural areas.   Our partners in Bangladesh, Vietnam and Uganda and our Emerging Leaders are working to change these statistics and are using today to shine a light on interventions and solutions that save lives, such as water safety skills and survival swim lessons. 

This week, our Road Safety team attended the Pan American Health Organization's Regional Workshop in D.C. to promote legislative initiatives from a Safe System approach! Regional solutions are crucial for preventing serious road injuries and saving lives. The Safe System approach recognizes that human mistakes are inevitable, and it focuses on reducing the severity of crashes to prevent serious injuries and fatalities.

That's a wrap on our CSO Budget Advocacy Academy in Nairobi! 🎉 On day two, participants: ✔ Showcased knowledge gained from a media advocacy exercise. ✔ Crafted SMART communications objectives—including identifying target audiences, creating key messages and devising tactics, resources, timelines and monitoring frameworks. ✔ Formulated realistic communications plans and hooked media stories on human interest with the support of our Prevent Epidemics team. ✔ Learned to coalesce with like-minded organizations, mobilize communities and engage both senior and mid-level leaders for sustained impact.   We also held world café-style sessions focused on emphasizing the need for advocacy in budget accountability. (A key takeaway was the issue of advocacy as a component of support and not a tool for alienating decision-makers.)   Advocates are now leaving Nairobi with the foundations of real-world budget advocacy projects to support #EpidemicPreparedness and Response in their own countries for the next six months.

⭐ Program Spotlight: Food and Nutrition ⭐ Our Food and Nutrition team is based all over the world to help pass meaningful healthy food policies in the regions we work. In this video, they celebrate our #10YearsofImpact by sharing the achievements they are most proud of.

🚦 NEW #RoadSafety Case Study! 🚦   In 2022, Mexico made significant strides in road safety with the passage of the Mobility and Road Safety Law. This groundbreaking legislation includes new regulations on child restraint systems, drink driving, helmet use, seatbelt use and speed management, all aligning with World Health Organization best practices.   Curious how our civil society advocates played a crucial role in this policy victory? They built strong coalitions, provided critical evidence and countered opposition with powerful public support campaigns.   Dive in deeper right here: https://lnkd.in/dUR_hrKa   #PublicHealth #GlobalHealth #PolicyWin #NewCaseStudy #Mexico

"As Director of the Food Policy Program for Africa, I aim to strengthen locally-led advocacy and establish a robust network of partners who can effectively influence healthy food policy debates across the continent.”   For the last installment of our Food and Nutrition Program blog series all about our directors, we spoke with Esubalew Dadi for his perspective on how the program has expanded in Africa and how it will continue to forge progress in promoting public health equity. Read it here: https://lnkd.in/gmaucfKG

"Our Food and Nutrition program's strength comes from collaborating with our global team, even beyond our existing policy work."   For part two of our blog series on their directors, we sat down with Hema S. Khanchandani. She shared her insights on the program’s impressive growth, her vision for the future and the secret sauce that makes our team so effective. Read it here: https://lnkd.in/ePCMy9ns

We're building a new generation of health budget advocates in Africa! 💪🏥 In Nairobi today, the energy has been palpable at the in-person session of our CSO Budget Advocacy Academy, which our Prevent Epidemics program launched in early May in partnership with Resolve To Save Lives (RTSL). Fourteen advocates from across seven African countries aren't just learning about budgets—they're becoming a force for change. Approving budgets for public health isn't enough. Real impact comes from making sure funds are allocated and used effectively to strengthen health systems, prevent outbreaks and respond rapidly when they occur. The financial toll of epidemic unpreparedness has been staggering—COVID-19 cost the world $29.4 trillion, and the Ebola outbreak cost three small African economies $53 billion. But the cost of preparation is far less. Every dollar invested in preventing infectious disease outbreaks saves $16 in response costs. This is the critical mission our new advocates are embracing. Today, our own Vandana Shah spoke, and emphasized the need for sustainable and accountable implementation of government commitments to epidemic preparedness. And Marine Buissonniere from RTSL highlighted the importance of strong health systems and community involvement, reminding us that epidemics start in communities, not boardrooms. Through engaging panel discussions, we explored the vital role of national health insurance schemes, community surveillance and local health service capacity in epidemic preparedness and response. The consensus is clear: a whole-of-government approach and dedicated investment are essential to break the cycle of reactive responses to outbreaks. #CSOAcademyGHAI #PreventEpidemics #HealthSecurity #BudgetAdvocacy #AfricaRising

This past week, we had several strategic meetings with key Vietnam government partners at the national and local level to discuss the sustainability of their national #drowningprevention program and their continued strong local ownership. * Ministry of Labours, Invalids and Social Affairs * Ministry of Education and Training * National Assembly’s Committee on Culture and Education We also participated in an Inter-Sectoral meeting hosted in the Nghe An province, which was an opportunity to learn about the People's Committee of Nghe An's successful model for child drowning prevention. We thank the Vietnamese government for their continued partnership and commitment, serving as a model for other countries with high burdens of drowning.