Immediate Healthcare Interventions: A Path to Prosperity in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

Public health is a perennial problem in sub-Saharan Africa. Extreme poverty and widespread conflict create poor conditions for maintaining human health. At the same time, disease and high mortality rates impede socioeconomic development. To end this negative feedback loop, foreign governments and organizations are pursuing a number of public health initiatives, broadly categorized into long-term interventions and immediate interventions. One striking trend over the past 15 years has been a dramatic shift towards immediate interventions. However, it is unclear whether this shift is the right strategy for solving the public health crisis. Here, I show that immediate interventions have indeed positively impacted socioeconomic conditions in sub-Saharan Africa, initiating a previously uncharacterized positive feedback loop between good health and rising socioeconomic indicators. Using quantitative economic, health, and social indicators as well as case studies, I show that immediate interventions have distinct advantages over long-term interventions when considering ease of implementation. My research not only suggests that the current strategy is working, but also that future public health strategy should continue to focus primarily on immediate interventions to provide maximum, sustained socioeconomic gains while achieving maximum cost-effectiveness.