An obscure but influential program that has given detailed public health information to around half of the world’s nations will be folded up following the Trump administration freezing on foreign aid.
With the funding of the United States agency for international development, demographic and health surveys were the only sources of information in many countries on health and mortality and mortality of children, nutrition, genesic health and HIV infections, between many other health indicators.
Surveys have collected data in 90 low and intermediate income nations, which then used information to set health benchmarks at local, national and global levels, including the 2030 sustainable development objectives adopted by the United Nations member countries.
On Tuesday, the administrators of the program learned that he was “dismissed for the convenience of the American government”, with immediate effect, according to an email targeted by the New York Times. They were ordered to “stop all the work, terminate the subcontracts and not place other orders”.
The Trump administration dismantles USAID; Thousands of layoffs are expected in the coming days. Without future surveys, it will be almost impossible to measure the impact of these foreign aid reductions on citizens of countries without substantial health infrastructure.
Some global health experts reacted to the disappearance of the program with dismay.
“It is really difficult for me to understand how you could implement reflected public health programs and to follow progress towards strategic objectives if you do not have the type of data available from the DHS,” said Win Brown, a demographer from the University of Washington.
“You cannot keep track of what is going on, you cannot form strategies, you cannot make adjustments according to how your data change,” he added.
We did not know what could happen to the research that has been collected in recent decades or to current investigation projects in 25 countries. “We must find a way to recover this data, and I think it is possible,” said Livia Montana, technical director of the program.
Surveys have been carried out since 1984. Funding has totaled around $ 500 million over five years, of which about half came from USAID and half from other donors, including the nations themselves.
Some countries, such as India, had almost fully resumed funding for their own surveys. Research is widely considered essential.
“The impact of these disruptions will affect local, regional, national and global levels”, a group of dozens of experts warned February 13.
Some United Nations organizations assess data on health or census of children and adolescents in certain countries, while others measure household income or agricultural production.
But demographic and health surveys collected every five years have recorded all the critical aspects of household health, including mortality data, size and weight and nutritional status of children and adults, education and literacy, as well as access to clean water and mobile phones.
“Malnutrition indicators are among the most important” because they can reflect a range of societal factors, said Dr. Montana. Investigations also evaluated the indicators of malaria separately and health establishments.
Estimates of maternal and infantile mortality are essentially important in countries that do not have good death recording systems. The surveys have also measured the size of the family, which can indicate the availability of family planning but also reflects wider societal factors, including access to girls’ education.
Dr. Brown used surveys, for example, to compare contraceptive use in women in countries like Egypt, Pakistan and India over the decades. “In an investigation like the DHS, you are on the ground by speaking of real people, from the point of view of their real houses in real communities,” he said.
Like other projects funded with foreign aid, the program was under a work prescription before termination. Every 80 -year -old employees except 11 were on leave without salary, and his relations with entrepreneurs ended a few weeks ago.
Informed of the judgment, some national governments have expressed their concern and empathy, and several asked if they could pay to finish the work. Others took it in the process, said Dr. Montana.
“It’s a bit like they had experienced more of this kind of thing where political winds are changing immediately,” she said.