Blog Posts Archives - Health Action International

Reflections from the Global Health Hub Germany Annual Meeting

Following HAI’s participation in the Global Health Hub Germany Annual Meeting in Berlin, Tim Reed, HAI’s non-executive advisor, reflects on the strengths of cross-border collaboration, the different approaches taken by…

When Women Lead, Communities Gain

From the Netherlands to the Great Lakes region of Africa, women leaders are advancing sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). They challenge taboos, mobilise communities, and help women and…

Agreement on the EU pharmaceutical package: an achievement to build on.

In the early hours of the morning on Thursday 11th December, the 4th round of the so-called ‘pharma package’ trialogue, concluded with agreement between the European Parliament (EP) and the…

17 December 2025

Shaping Adolescents’ Access to SRH in Rwanda

In this guest blog our SHARP in-country partner, Rwanda NGOs Forum on HIV/AIDS and Health Promotion (RNGOF), explain the journey to shape adolescents’ access to SRH in Rwanda. Imagine you’re…

17 September 2025

Storytelling as a lifeline for SRH advocacy in tough funding times

Guest blog by Lizzie Otaye, Development Communications Consultant, EANNASO – Solutions for Supporting Healthy Adolescents and Rights Protection project If there is any data that should keep civil society organisations…

Period Tracking Apps and Consumer Protections

Last week, reports emerged in the UK of concerned public health experts calling for public alternatives to commercial period tracking apps. Their research shows that women’s personal data is at…

Strengthening Adolescent Health: Highlights from SHARP’s Annual Reflection Meeting in Zambia

As the Solutions for Supporting Healthy Adolescents and Rights Protection (SHARP) project reaches the end of its third year, partners from across the Great Lakes Region gathered in April in…

Breaking the Cycle of Neglect: Confronting Snakebite Envenoming in Kenya

Guest blog by Chloe Vasquez, member of the Snakebite Community Engagement Network (SCEN) Every year, millions of lives worldwide are impacted by the under-recognized tragedy of snakebite envenoming (SBE). According to the…

30 January 2025

A week among the greatest of mountains and minds: My experience at the European Health Forum Gastein

Janneke van Oirschot, HAI’s AI & Health Project coordinator took part in the Young Forum Gastein Scholarship programme of this year’s European Health Forum Gastein (EHFG). Below she shares some…

Everything Changes Everything Stays the Same

It may seem unlikely that I would invoke a Buddhist quote, but it seems very apt when it comes to a recent constitutional change in HAI’s governance. That said, I…

28 November 2023

Flexibilities Navigator: An evermore valuable resource

Over the last few years, HAI’s European Projects and Communication Teams have been hard at work developing a specialised resource, the TRIPS Flexibilities Navigator, to encourage, embolden and enthuse decision-makers…

Reaching Snakebite Affected Communities Through Art

This guest piece by Maria Elena Barragan-Paladines, Executive Director of the Gustavo Orcés Herpetological Foundation (Ecuador), marks International Snakebite Awareness Day 2023! Maria is member of the Snakebite Community Engagement…

19 September 2023

World Snake Day: Celebrating snakes and their protectors

Guest blog by Hiral Naik, Africa Program Manager, Save The Snakes; and Chair of the Snakebite Community Engagement Network On 16 July we celebrate World Snake Day, and it is…

Health for all: Health for WHO(m)?

As we observe World Health Day (7th April) we also celebrate 75 years since the World Health Organization (WHO) was founded. The mantra then was ‘health for all’ and is…

No taboos at Zambia SRH workshop

The Solutions for Supporting Healthy Adolescents and Rights Protection (SHARP) Project, funded by the European Union, is dedicated to improving access to adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) commodities and…

15 February 2023

New year reflections: A year past, a year ahead

6 January | by Dr. Tim Reed I can hardly believe that it’s time for a “start of the year” blog with reflections on the last 12 months and a…

Safiya’s 8 Secrets: learning about snakebite prevention through comic books

Since its inception, HAI’s Snakebite Project has developed an array of useful tools on snakebite prevention and first aid. To effectively equip snakebite-affected communities with knowledge about snakebite prevention, first…

25 November 2022

HAI welcomes new Foundation Board Chair

At the recent HAI Foundation Board meeting (June 24-25, 2022), we said farewell to Lander van Ommen, who completed two terms as Chair of the Foundation Board. We are incredibly…

Call for Action: High Time to Prioritise Health in the EU Artificial Intelligence Act

24 June 2022 | by Hannah van KOLFSCHOOTEN & Janneke van OIRSCHOT A first win for HAI in the AI Act negotiation process: Many amendments we proposed to make the AI…

Artificial Intelligence Act – A long awaited report surfaces

In their long-awaited draft report, published on Friday 22 April, the European Parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) and Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) committees, led by…

European Commission’s State of the Union address: Reflection and Transparency Notable Absences

Yesterday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen delivered her annual State of the Union address. The purpose of the speech is to reflect on the previous year and to set…

16 September 2021

A poster for change: HAI’s Snakebite First-aid poster is now available in Swahili

It all started in 2018 with the idea of sharing our knowledge on snakebite first-aid with people living in snakebite endemic rural communities all over Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia. With…

Clinical Trial Data and the Risk of Bias

In 2018, HAI co-funded a study investigating the risk of bias in cancer drug trials submitted to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) to inform the approval of the drugs for public use (Naci…

Teen mothers defy odds and return to school after giving birth

Author: Lilian Kaivilu | Producer: Dorothy Okemo In our blog series “Four tales from Narok County, Kenya” we put the spotlight on the healthcare situation of people living in this…

No Profit on a Pandemic

The No Profit on Pandemic campaign is a European Citizens’ Initiative calling on the European Commission to do everything in its power to make anti-pandemic vaccines and treatments a global…

Abandoned Youth Centres Reducing Youth Empowerment

Author: Lilian Kaivilu | Producer: Dorothy Okemo In our blog series “Four tales from Narok County, Kenya” we put the spotlight on the healthcare situation of people living in this…

How a tourism officer became a key link between his community and health facilities

Author: Lilian Kaivilu | Producer: Dorothy Okemo In our blog series “Four tales from Narok County, Kenya” we put the spotlight on the healthcare situation of people living in this district, with…

A 20km walk to buy a face mask and no essential medicines: Tales of a lone health worker in Ololung’a’s only health facility – photo essay

Author: Lilian Kaivilu | Producer: Dorothy Okemo In our blog series “Four tales from Narok County, Kenya” we put the spotlight on the healthcare situation of people living in Narok…

11 February 2021

Pharmaceutical promotion: how does it impact rational use of medicine?

Pharmaceutical promotion: how does it impact rational use of medicine? Every year, Health Action International (HAI) accepts a few bright and ambitious students into its internship programme at our Amsterdam…

19 October 2020

COVID-19 exposes weak health systems

In Health Action International’s 40 years exploring and offering solutions to the eternal problem of weak health systems, we have never encountered a situation in which these weaknesses were so…

1 September 2020