African regional colloquium on public health, law, and human rights: emerging research agendas in the context of the climate crisis

12.00-14.00 CET, Lagos
13.00-15.00 Pretoria
14.00-16.00 Nairobi

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Background

In recent years the Global Health Law Groningen Research Centre (GHLG) has held annual summer schools on aspects of global health, law, and human rights.

In 2020 and 2021 the summer school was cancelled due to COVID-19. During this period, the GHLG team has reflected on how we can work more effectively with academic partners and other actors to strengthen global health law capacity, particularly in low and middle-income countries. COVID-19 and the climate crisis also demand that priorities and ways of working be adapted to meet these and other health challenges.

Given GHLG’s growing links with academics and student alumni in the Africa region, we propose to commence 2022 with an online colloquium with colleagues from the region to assist us to identify opportunities for collaboration between institutions, networks, and researchers to address global health challenges. Specifically, the colloquium will address the question:

What are the one or two top public health issues in Africa that could benefit from further research from the legal and human rights perspective ? What opportunities exist to identify and support greater research collaboration between academic institutions, networks, and researchers to address these issues?

Objectives

1. Identify priority current and emerging issues in global health, law, and human rights in the African region with specific reference to the climate crisis
2. Explore opportunities for identifying academic institutions, networks, and researchers working these issues.
3. Identify opportunities to support collaboration between institutions, networks and researchers and other actors to address the issues identified.

Format

Online Zoom // Chatham House Rules (the session may be recorded to assist with reporting). Panelists will address the discussion question, followed by a general discussion.

Chairperson

Prof. Brigit Toebes, Chair, Health Law in a Global Context, Global Health Law Groningen Research Centre, Department of Transboundary Legal Studies, Faculty of Law, University of Groningen, Netherlands

Panellists

• Mr David Kabanda, Executive Director, Centre for Food and Adequate Living Rights, (CFROHT), Uganda
• Prof Leslie London, Chair of Public Health Medicine, University of Cape Town, South Africa
• Prof Cheluchi Onyemelukwe, Managing Partner, Health Ethics and Law Consulting; Professor of Law, Babcock University, Nigeria.

• Dr Idda Lyatonga Swai, Senior Lecturer, Researcher and Head of Department of Local Government Management of Mzumbe University, Tanzania

Discussants

• Dr Denis Bikesha, Dean of the School of Law, University of Rwanda
• Dr Mackfallen Anasel, Senior Lecturer in Health Systems Management (Demography) and Head of Department of Health Systems Management, Mzumbe University, Tanzania

Report of the Colloquium

The report of the African regional colloquium on public health, law, and human rights can be downloaded here.