African Population and Health Research Center

03/06/2026

Today, 's Jacqueline Kung'u, PhD. , will make a presentation at the IUNS–FANUS Joint Webinar: 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐍𝐮𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬: 𝐆𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬!

She will present on "Rethinking School Meals in Africa: Linking Children's Nutrition with Local Food Systems" — exploring how school feeding programmes can go far beyond addressing hunger to become powerful tools for improving child nutrition, supporting local farmers, strengthening food systems, and building resilience across African communities.

Tune in to catch her session! 👇
📅 June 3, 2026
🕤 1:50 PM EAT | 9:30 AM – 2:00 PM (CEST)
🌍 IUNS–FANUS Joint Webinar
Meeting link: https://buff.ly/cXatGPT

Meeting ID: 811 7990 9394
Passcode: 137264

02/06/2026

APHRC’s Mental Health Data Prize Africa initiative final convening kicked off today in Mombasa, Kenya. This event brings together global leaders, researchers, people with lived experience and tech innovators dedicated to rewriting the future of mental health across the continent through the power of data, collaboration, and local ownership.

The opening sessions delivered insights on what it takes to build a resilient, data-driven health ecosystem:

Dr. Bishar Issak (Director of Family Health at the Ministry of Health in Kenya) highlighted Kenya’s proactive strides in integrating mental health into primary healthcare and expanding digital health platforms, emphasizing that progress relies heavily on data-driven decisions and responsible innovation.

’s Catherine Kyobutungi challenged the ecosystem to bridge deep infrastructure and talent gaps, and to systematically scale local innovations into standardized, commercialized outcomes.

Winnie Wefelmeyer and Ekin Bolukbasi from the Wellcome Trust noted that data alone will not transform Africa’s mental health landscape and that creating equitable, context-specific solutions requires multidisciplinary collaboration and the deeply meaningful involvement of people with lived experiences.

The is proving that data can be a true catalyst for systemic innovation, stronger public health frameworks, and better mental health outcomes across the continent.

02/06/2026

The foundations of gender attitudes are often laid long before harmful behaviors become visible.

As written by 's Michelle Mbuthia, early adolescence is a pivotal stage where young people begin shaping their views on gender, identity, and power. Yet, interventions often come much later—after these beliefs have already taken root.

“In Kenya, adolescents are growing up amid shifting social expectations, peer influence, online content, and personal transitions. Without timely, evidence-based support, harmful gender norms can become deeply embedded, influencing how young people perceive and express masculinity and femininity throughout their lives.”

📖 Read more in the latest APHRC Newsletter (Issue 1, 2026), pages 10–11: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐖𝐞 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐖𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐢𝐭: 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐀𝐝𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐁𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐧 𝐊𝐞𝐧𝐲𝐚.

👉 https://buff.ly/JpEeaEw

29/05/2026

Between December 2023 and April 2024, the Baobab Research Program Consortium conducted the second-ever Humanitarian Violence Against Children Survey (HVACS) in Ethiopia's refugee camps — and what the findings reveal demands urgent attention.

“1 𝒊𝒏 3 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 1 𝒊𝒏 5 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒅 18–24 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒗𝒊𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒐𝒇 18. 𝑨𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒅𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒅 13–17, 𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒙𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒐𝒏𝒆-𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒓𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒈𝒊𝒓𝒍𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒐𝒏𝒆-𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒓𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒃𝒐𝒚𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒗𝒊𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒆.”

Our Senior Communications Officer, Michelle Mbuthia, breaks down these critical findings and what they mean for programming and policy.

📖 Read the full story in our latest APHRC Newsletter (Issue 1, 2026) | Pages 8–9: 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞: 𝐀 𝐅𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐄𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐚'𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐠𝐞𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐬

👉 https://buff.ly/JpEeaEw

29/05/2026

Strengthening efficient and responsive health systems through AI-driven digital solutions is at the core of ’s partnership with Murang’a County. The collaboration is supporting smarter pharmaceutical management systems, evidence-informed decision-making, and stronger health service delivery across county health facilities.

Murang’a County’s new partnership with to connect 170 health facilities with satellite internet marks an important step in accelerating this work. Enhanced connectivity will help power digital health innovations, enable real-time access to critical information, and improve coordination and efficiency in healthcare delivery, especially in hard-to-reach areas.

’s Project Manager, Ivan Busulwa, was present during the launch, reaffirming the Center’s commitment to supporting innovative, technology-enabled healthcare solutions that strengthen county health systems and improve service delivery for communities.

The investment reflects growing collaboration between research, government, and technology partners to advance resilient, people-centered healthcare systems.

29/05/2026

This week, , in collaboration with the Southern African Development Community–Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF) Secretariat, facilitated a four-day training workshop in Lesotho for parliamentary staff of the Parliament of Lesotho on evidence-informed decision-making.

The workshop equipped participants with skills in generating, translating, and applying evidence on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), as well as crafting compelling, research-backed evidence and technical briefs to support legislators in law-making and policy development.

28/05/2026

Strong evidence alone is not enough!

Months, sometimes years, go into generating high-quality research; yet far too often, findings sit on shelves while critical decisions are made without them. The reality? Evidence does not automatically translate into policy or practice.

“The assumption that strong evidence will speak for itself rarely holds true in real-world policy environments where decisions are influenced by political cycles, institutional interests, and social pressures.”

So how do we bridge the gap? Doris Omao and Jane Mangwana explore this critical question in our latest APHRC Newsletter (Issue 1, 2026) — 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗘𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁: 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻-𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗔𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮.

Head to page 6-7 to read more.👉 https://buff.ly/JpEeaEw

28/05/2026

Heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) is more than ‘just a heavy period’. In most cases, HMB may signal the presence of several other reproductive health and hormonal challenges.For many adolescents, HMB can be particularly distressing. Many young girls begin menstruation without accurate information about what is “normal” and what is not.

As we commemorate this year’s Menstrual Health Hygiene Day, APHRC is calling for the recognition of heavy menstrual bleeding not only as a public health issue, but also as a gender equity and social justice issue. No woman or girl should have to suffer in silence, miss opportunities, or compromise her wellbeing because of a treatable condition.



Read more here:

Each year, Menstrual Health Hygiene Day, celebrated on May 28, shines a spotlight on the importance of menstrual health, dignity, and access to care. One of the most relevant yet overlooked menstrual health conditions is heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB), a condition that is estimated to affect million...

26/05/2026

25 APHRC Facts in 25 Days! Fact 4…

continues to uphold the highest standards of governance, ensuring our systems and processes are transparent, agile, and efficient.

Fairness, Integrity, Respect, Excellence…
Not just our values, but how we work, every day!

26/05/2026

“From the community perspective, what does not fit within their lived realities will slowly disappear as daily intricacies take over. Charting new frontiers, then, is more about aligning programming more closely with the systems and realities it is meant to serve,” Sheena Kayira Head, Business Development, APHRC.

📑 In her article “Designing What Lasts: End-to-End Systems Rooted in Lived Realities,” Sheena highlights what it means to align programs with the lived realities of the communities we work with.

📕 Read the story in our latest APHRC Newsletter (Issue 1, 2026) | Page 4-5 by Sheena Kayira 👉 https://buff.ly/JpEeaEw