From chronic emergency to development: an analysis of the health of the urban poor in Luanda, Angola.
There is a dearth of published literature on health care systems in Angola. Like many sub-Saharan African countries, Angola is experiencing rapid urbanization. The authors provide an analysis of the health status, environmental health conditions, and health-related behavior of the urban poor in Luanda, Angola. Although data are patchy and rarely disaggregated to reveal severe conditions in the shanty towns, a grave picture emerges. An average infant mortality rate of 104/1,000, with malaria and intestinal infections the main causes of death in children under 1 year old, reflects the poor environmental conditions, which are worsening as urbanization continues at a rapid rate. Use of health services is limited; for example, 50 percent of women give birth at home, mainly unassisted, and only 28 percent of children are covered by measles immunization (as validated by card). A discussion of existing health strategies, programs, and their constraints is set in the context of the future possibilities of the ending of the 15-year war and the introduction of structural adjustment policies.
Kanji
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Urban Health Programme, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, England.
Harpham
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T
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000810:Angola; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006285:Health Planning / Q000191:economics; D006304:Health Status; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D011203:Poverty; D011247:Pregnancy; D014507:Urbanization