State of the World’s Indigenous Peoples
Working Group on Indigenous Populations/Communities made the following recommendations to governments in regards to health: 1. P rovide well-equipped health centres stocked with adequate medicines and endowed with qualified staff within the communities where indigenous peoples live; 2. Provide training for health personnel from indigenous communities in terms of supervision and capacity building for traditional birth attendants; 3. Develop targeted sensitization campaigns and initiate community actions to ensure that the indigenous populations familiarize themselves with: immunization, antenatal and postnatal controls, HIV/AIDS screening; monitoring of chronic parasitic diseases among indigenous communities.24
The Batwa of Uganda The Batwa are also a vulnerable population. They have limited access to education, a high rate of alcoholism and poor medical care. They have high child mortality rates and low life expectancy. As with other indigenous peoples in the African region, there is also a lack of data on their health status and published research data are rare.25 Their situation is made worse by loss of land which they depend on for medicines. Women are also at high risk of getting HIV because of interaction with neighbouring communities, at risk of rape and having to exchange sex for necessities. Access to testing and care and treatment is a challenge, as they have to pay for services, and health workers do not treat them well.26 Coordinated action is needed by all sectors to improve the health of the Batwa peoples. In order for this to happen, the following were recommended: ɜɜ Acknowledge the rights of the Batwa as indigenous peoples; ɜɜ Increase Batwa participation in developing policies and programs; ɜɜ Enforce equal opportunity policies.
Kenya In Kenya, health facilities are often located in urban centres with almost no mobile health facilities to cater for nomadic pastoralists and communities in far-flung regions in the north and semi-arid areas where infrastructure is non-existent. The cost of accessing medical and health facilities in Kenya is also costly and often beyond the reach of many indigenous communities, who may not have the means to travel long distances to purchase certain prescribed drugs that are unavailable in public health facilities. The fact that there are almost no health facilities in close proximity to most indigenous peoples living in North-Eastern Kenya and remote parts of the Coast province and Rift Valley means that they have to walk long distances even during an emergency, which results in poor health outcomes.
24
Report of the Country Visit of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations/Communities to the Republic of Congo, 15-24 March 2010.
25
Social Determinants of Health for Uganda’s Indigenous Batwa: Sherilee Harper: Backgrounder No 32, June 2012.
26
State of the World’s Minorities and Indigenous Peoples. 2013. Minority Rights International. p. 68.
016 ξ Chapter 1