Urban population growth to increase infectious diseases

A disease surveillance expert, Dr Franklin Asiedu- Bekoe, has called on African leaders to work hard to tackle the spiraling urban population to prevent diseases.

Urban population growth, resulting in congestion in the cities, he warned, could trigger the upsurge of respiratory, infectious and sanitation-related diseases.

Statistics show that infectious diseases now account for about 62 per cent of all deaths among those aged between 15-59 years in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The situation could get worse as the United Nations Population Fund (UNPF) projects that, urban population on the continent could triple to about 800 million by 2025, with West Africa the hardest hit, as slums increased.

Dr Asiedu-Bekoe, was presenting a paper on current health issues in the Ashanti Region, Ghana and sub- Saharan Africa, at the closing session of the African Local Summit on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Kumasi.

The four-day event was sponsored by Empowerment WORKS, a United States (US)-based NGO, with support from the United Nations (UN).

“Empowering Africa to achieve the MDGs,” was the theme.

The summit provided a platform for the participants, drawn from all over Africa, to share knowledge and search for ways to meet the MDGs of halving poverty by the year 2015.

Topics discussed included:“Scaling up Africa’s infrastructure to reach the MDGs”, “Addressing Food and Agricultural Challenges”, “Achieving Gender Equalities”, “Addressing the Global Water and Sanitation Challenge” and “Applying New Technologies and Cost- Effective Delivery Systems in Basic Education.”

They also deliberated on the significance of transport services to each of the MDGs and delivering affordable housing and shelter.

Dr Asiedu-Bekoe said it is imperative that stakeholders stepped up the effort to bring down the incidence of HIV/AIDS, malaria, cholera and the other communicable diseases.

There should also be constant education programmes on cardiac-related diseases, sanitation, maternal and child mortality.

Dr Asiedu- Bekoe said a lot more needed to be done to fight poverty, diseases, hunger, unemployment and illiteracy in Africa.**