Unit 7 Political Systems of AfricaSS7CG3 The student will analyze how politics in Africa impacts standard of living.a. Compare how various factors, including gender, affect access to education in Kenya and Sudan.b. Describe the impact of government stability on the distribution of resources to combat AIDS and famine across Africa; specifically in Kenya and Sudan.

Essential QuestionHow does a

government’s stability influence the lives of its

citizens?

Look Lex Encyclopedia1. By law, how many years of free education are students in Sudan required to attend school? Nine years.2. At the age of 15, what educational opportunities are available to Sudanese students? After this, there are three possibilities: Three years of higher secondary school preparing for higher education; four years commercial, agricultural, or other technical school; four years of training to become a teacher.

CARE3. How many years has South Sudan been in conflict? 19 years

4. About what percentage of students are enrolled in school in Southern Sudan? 20-30%

5. If the current enrollment is 30% and 12% of students continue beyond 4th grade, what percentage of students are dropping out of school by the end of 3rd grade? 18%

South Sudan Education Emergency6. Why is gender inequality of the education of girls a unique situation in Southern Sudan? South Sudan has proportionately fewer girls going to school than any country in the world. According to UNICEF, fewer than one per cent of the girls complete primary education and only one schoolchild in four is a girl. The lack of female teachers – just seven % of the teaching force – reinforces this gender imbalance.

7. About how many women are literate in South Sudan? 10%

South Sudan cabinet adopts Gender Policy for the region

8. What topics were highlighted in the Gender Policy presented by Minister Kimbo to address issues of inequality related to gender? The document highlighted gender issues in relations to girl-child education, maternity health care, poverty, food security, access to land, gender-based violence and decision-making in public and family affairs.

South Sudan cabinet adopts Gender Policy for the region

9. What does the document discourage, promote, and give special consideration to? The document discourages early marriages of young girls and promotes easy access to education by a girl-child. It also calls for giving special consideration to establishing maternity health care centers in order to avoid numerous deaths of women during child delivery in the region.

10. According to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, 25-30% of the states budget should be allocated towards women for what purpose?

The document calls for establishment of special programs that would empower women to create an enabling environment and potential.

New Report Identifies Gender Inequality as a Barrier to Kenya’s

Development11. Kenya is making strides to bridge the gap of gender inequality, according to the IEA. Who is to blame for gender inequality in Kenya? This state of affairs is not blamed solely on women, but on the prevailing political system.

12. From primary school to secondary school, to the university level, what can you conclude about student enrollment? On primary school participation, the overall enrollment rate of boys is higher than that of their female counterparts. Secondary school data, on the other hand, shows that the rate of women’s enrollment is much lower. The trend continues into institutions of higher learning, where again, the number of female students at the university level is much lower than their male counterparts. The situation depicts the low progression of female students across all educational levels.

New Report Identifies Gender Inequality as a Barrier to Kenya’s Development

13. What is the governments’ role in continuing gender inequality with women operating 54% of the country’s enterprises? Both men and women are represented in the decision-making processes that are critical for effective implementation of policies that affect the overall population; but not enough women are represented in senior and middle level policy formulation and implementation processes.

14. How many Appeal Judges are there and how many of them are women?

Fifteen Appeal Judges, one woman

New Report Identifies Gender Inequality as a Barrier to Kenya’s Development

15. What are some challenges that women face that contribute to gender inequality in Kenya? Early marriage, some parents prefer to educate their sons over daughters, not represented in the senior and middle level policy formulation and implementation processes, domestic violence, traditional and social practices, and poverty.

16. How can improving gender equality in Kenya, benefit Kenya? It will not only benefit women, but also men, children, the poor and rich as well. This will also enhance women’s empowerment and contribute to sustainable economic growth, reduce poverty, and reduce social injustices.

On track to deliver17. One of Kenya’s MDGs is education. What changes have been made to education? The government has provided free primary school education and increased resource allocation to enhance its delivery. This has increased enrollment rates in primary schools, translating into high transition rates to secondary schools. Currently, the gross enrollment rate is 107% for primary schools. Government spending on education has ranged between 24% to 30% -- or about 6.5 % of the country's GDP -- in the past five years. In the 2007/08 budget, primary education development expenditure increased by 63% from 6.4-billion Kenyan shillings in the 2006/07 budget to 10.4-billion Kenyan shillings.

18. What challenges is Kenya facing withthese new changes to education? Pressure on the existing physical infrastructure

(classrooms), inadequate numbers of teachers, introduced free secondary education by paying tuition fees in all public secondary schools. Thus, the transition rate from primary education to secondary education has risen from 47% in 2003 to 60% in 2007. They are constructing more classrooms in primary schools and the government is in the process of recruiting more primary school teachers.

Infectious Disease in Kenya19. What is the government of Kenya doing to combat famine in Kenya? The goal of the Government of Kenya (GOK) is to increase levels of farming in rural Kenya by providing a number of drought-tolerant techniques to rural farmers in order to increase production and provide direct food distribution. Kenya has instituted a number of programs to increase economic production of natural resources, improved community-based wildlife management, strengthened forestry and environmental management, enhanced integrated coastal zone management, and strengthened the skills of community-based organizations.

Hungry Africans’ Stark AIDS Dilemma20.How has the famine in Kenya affected those diagnosedwith HIV/AIDS? Severe drought across Kenya and the Horn of Africa has meant that patients on anti-retrovirals who don't get enough to eat have been unable to tolerate their medicines, so they have stopped taking them, been hospitalized, and been given a food ration of 6kg of maize meal and beans a month. Failure to adhere to treatment brings the prospect of drug resistance and the possibility of passing the resistant strain onto others, making the battle against HIV/AIDS that much harder to fight. Many would rather buy food to eat than to take pills as they know “HIV will not kill them immediately, but faminefamine might kill you in one week."

The Links: HIV/AIDS and Rural Agricultural Systems21. How is subsistence farming being affected by people infected with HIV/AIDS? Subsistence farming systems rely heavily on humans, most often women, for tilling and tending crops. In sub-Saharan Africa, 65 percent of the power for land preparation is provided by people, with 25 percent by draft animals and only 10 percent from engines. The extent to which HIV/AIDS makes people ill, disables them, and then causes deaths. It places a strain on rural agricultural production. In settings where this subsistence agriculture is the norm, HIV/AIDS retards agricultural production, and threatens food security.

22. What does a reduction in human labor mean towards agricultural production and food security? The disease affects the potential labor provided by infected individuals, yet it also influences the availability of other household members, because they must care for sick individuals. Previously tended land may be left fallow, resulting in less food production. In addition, important tasks, such as weeding, may be postponed, therefore reducing yields. Labor shortages can also change what crops are planted. The death of an adult male often lowers production of "cash crops," such as coffee, tea, and sugar. In contrast, grain crops suffer shortfalls following the death of an adult female.

The Links: HIV/AIDS and Rural Agricultural Systems23. How is the loss of agricultural knowledge another way HIV/AIDS threatens food security? AIDS/HIV mortality is highest among prime-age adults, and is important in managing agricultural land that is often lost when they die. Research shows the importance of the intergenerational transfer of knowledge about seeds for maintaining agricultural systems and noted parents as a key source of information on seeds, illustrating the important impact of the loss of prime-age adults on transfer of local agricultural knowledge from parent to child.

On track to deliver24. What has the government of Kenya done to help Kenyans with HIV/AIDS? The government of Kenya provided free anti-retroviral drugs to patients and established a large number of free voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) centers throughout the country. HIV-positive patients receive advice and are enrolled in anti-retroviral therapy (ART) programs, and the government supports these patients with food supplements and other mitigation programs, such as income-generating activities. Also, to ensure all expectant mothers are safe and get quality health services, the government abolished user fees in all public maternity hospitals and clinics and encouraged mothers to deliver in the nearest maternity facility under the supervision of a skilled health worker.

The Price of Silence: HIV/AIDS control in Sudan25. What consequences has Sudan suffered as a direct result of their civil war? In the last twenty years, the war killed two million people and displaced 4.5 million. Southern Sudan remains one of the most isolated, neglected, and least developed regions of Africa. The mortality rate is high, health care facilities in the south have either been completely destroyed or lack basic medical supplies, famine, inadequate access to safe water, sanitation, and poor hygiene practices are the major causes of several diseases leading to the high level of infant and child mortality rates, and the spread of HIV/AIDS.

26. Why are the displaced Sudanese refugees at a higher risk of getting HIV/AIDS? It is an interruption of the social fabric and human rights abuses, particularly sexual violence, and sickness, with little or no access to medical care, education, clean water, and other essential services.27. Cultural and religious differences have created a stigma concerning HIV/AIDS education. What are 4 other factors contributing to this stigma? (1) People infected with the virus are viewed as people who bring shame and embarrassment to their families, (2) ignorance, (3) lack of awareness, and (4) traditional beliefs.

The Price of Silence: HIV/AIDS control in Sudan

28. Why are Sudanese confused about the word “AIDS”? Some confuse the word “AIDS” with aid and relief food. Due to the lack of sufficient public health education, many people do not know enough about the disease, its methods of transmission or devastating consequences, and many have not heard about the disease.

29. What factors have stopped the media from making the Sudanese aware of HIV/AIDS? The media is under the government’s control, and many newspapers have been subjected to confiscation and their publishers or journalists to interrogation if they approach sensitive subjects in a way that the government does not feel comfortable with.

30. According to the SNAP Survey, describe the Sudan National AIDS Control Program.The program’s office is poorly furnished, with insufficient library facilities, no reference books or journals, no documentation and insufficient transport facilities. The government’s federal fund does not completely cover the program’s responsibilities and functions, the spending priorities continue to be defense and security, and the funding for the HIV/AIDS program remains insufficient.