Video of Bill Clinton’s appearance at TED 2007.
When his presidential term ended, i always thought that African leaders should retain his services as a consultant and advisor. He is a very smart leader (many other qualities that if i was to list here…this whole page would be full); Simply put, he finds solutions to problems, and inspires others to do the same.
Listen to what he and his foundation were able to do in Rwanda.Notably – A healthcare model that utilizes 5% of GDP, sustainable and not dependent on foreign aid.The model is to be replicated in other countries in Africa including Kenya.
In my opinion, this is indeed quite powerful. Health care has been and continues to be a big problem in Kenya. There are many dispensaries and such around the country, but think back and remember how people suffered when the world bank did not authorize money in the form of loans or when there was a precipitous drop in foreign aid. Barely any medicines, little or no pay for the nurses and doctors…etc. The late 80′s and early 90′s were particularly bad, just as the AIDs epidemic got a stronghold over the population.
So when there is a model that can utilize a % of GDP instead of foreign aid, i cant help but herald it as a god send. It would lend some stability to the healthcare system in Kenya, whose economy has seen some resurgence since the year 2000, growing at a reported 4.3%.
I will update the post later once i find more info on this particular healthcare model.
PS: You can watch the Ted Talks videos on the site or subscribe in I-tunes. (Word of caution to architecture buffs,at the end of the other ted talks podcasts, seeing a wrecking ball smashing the bridge at falling water can be just a tad unnerving…)
@ AfroM
I haven’t listened to the video, kudos to Clinton
We must also be careful of so called models of healthcare (code word for Big pharma shipping tonnes of pills) practiced in the first world.
I’ve often seen the comparison between the billions spent on HIV/AIDs while children still die of cholera, dysentry, mulnutrition, hunger and starvation and women die in child birth.
5% of GDP if not carefully used will only benefit the rich while the poor can’t even get enough to eat and clean water to drink.
In the vid, Bill clinton points to the middle men who were inflating the price and thus making the AIDS drugs needlessly expensive… The program is spearheaded by a former private equity doyenne and appears to be well thought out; but you are indeed correct, it is wise to carefully evaluate these programs and make sure that the programs are contextualized.