ASADI to focus on maternal and child healthcare this year

The fifth annual international conference of the African Science Academy Development Initiative (ASADI) will be held Nov. 9-11 in Accra, Ghana, in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences. The theme of this year's conference will be improving maternal, newborn, and child health in Africa, which will be discussed by top experts from around the world. ASADI V will kick off with the release of Science in Action: Saving the Lives of Africa's Mothers, Newborns, and Children, a new report by several African science academies, assessing the effectiveness of interventions aimed at reducing maternal and childhood mortality -- the focus of U.N. Millennium Development Goals Four and Five -- in sub-Saharan Africa. The report will include estimates of lives that could be saved if proven scientific methods reached more parts of Africa.

DETAILS:

The conference will be held in the Adae Kese Conference Room of the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, Accra, Ghana. The opening ceremony takes place on Monday, Nov. 9, at 6 p.m. It will be preceded that afternoon by a press conference to release the Science in Action report (time to be determined). On Tuesday, Nov. 10, the conference runs from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Wednesday, Nov. 11, from 9 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. More information, including a draft agenda, is available at http://national-academies.org/asadi. ASADI is a collaboration among several African science academies and the U.S. National Academies to strengthen the capacity of the African academies to inform policy and public discourse through independent, evidence-based advice.