FIRST AFRICAN CONFERENCE ON HEALTH IN DETENTION KICKS OFF IN NAIROBI

By Nicholas Kigondu 

The first African Conference on Health in Detention has kicked off with over 150 delegates from African countries and health experts attending the forum.

Dubbed, Making the Difference: African Solutions to Improving health in Detention, the conference has brought together practitioners and managers from African countries, including those from government ministries responsible for prisons and prison health, officials from health ministries or departments, public health experts, representatives from international organizations and researchers.

The conference, which runs from Wednesday to Friday, is Organized by ICRC and co-hosted by Kenya State Department for Correctional Services, in partnership with the Ministry of Health, Kenya Red Cross, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, African Correctional Services Association (ACSA) and the International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA). 

It aims to provide a platform for health professionals and management working in detention settings in African countries to take stock of and share experience on effective prison health policies and practices, and the lessons learnt, to promote a whole-of-government approach to health in detention, and to mutually foster respect for pertinent international law and standards.

According to Correctional Services Principal Secretary Dr. Salome Beacco, some of the topics to be covered during the conference include prioritizing the integration of international laws and standards on detention and health in national and regional policies while putting people deprived of their liberty at the centre and working towards stronger health systems in detention, integrated approaches and partnership. 

Others are, the situation of infectious and non-communicable diseases and what can be done to make a difference on the African continent, preparing for future health-security hazards, including climate change, food insecurity and emergencies in detention, health in detention in conflict environments, health determinants in health protection and new technologies and innovations to improve health in detention.