Donor Community Research Articles

Common ground: the opportunity of male contraceptives as MPTs.

Multipurpose prevention technologies (MPTs) and male contraceptive methods are currently in development to address unique and critical needs facing the global reproductive health community. Currently, MPT products in development are exclusively female-focused due to the readily available nature and regulatory precedent offered by female contraceptive active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs); however, the opportunity to explore codevelopment with male contraceptive methods, which are at a comparatively early stage of development, should not be overlooked. These fields face parallel challenges including research and development, commercialization, regulatory approval, and market uptake, and these parallels can inform strategic alignment between the fields. One challenge that precludes codevelopment, however, is the path to market and associated funding models for these innovative, yet underappreciated fields. Without candid review, reconsideration, prioritization, and innovation led by the donor and investment communities, product developers will have no compelling reason to consider accepting the added regulatory and fiscal burden associated with combining development streams.

Understanding community resilience in Yemen: how parallel institutions meet essential needs in the absence of the state

ABSTRACT How do Yemeni communities build and sustain resilience in wartime when state institutions are weak or absent? Based on original research across 14 communities in Yemen, this paper compares international and Yemeni conceptions of community resilience, explores how local residents assess threats to their communities, and identifies the actors, institutions, and norms that enhance community resilience. We show that parallel institutions—non-state socio-political, cultural, religious and economic networks and practices used to fill governance gaps or bypass state institutions—bolster community resilience through the provision of material, social, and existential resources. Data from the field demonstrate that patronage, kinship and brokerage are three categories of parallel institutions which, alongside civil society organisations (CSOs), play a particularly salient role in sustaining community resilience in Yemen. However, the downsides of parallel institutions—including nepotism, favouritism and further weakening of state legitimacy—pose complex challenges for the donor community and local stakeholders. The further weakening of state institutions will likely lead parallel institutions to play an increasingly salient role, while increasing the burden of providing essential services.

Analysis of Monitoring and Evaluation Practices on Performance of Non-Governmental Organizations’ Project in Kiambu County, Kenya

Monitoring and evaluation is an essential practice in project management as it helps the project's scope to be defined, interventions to be established, and project managers to have an understanding of how project interventions would affect the project's implementation and objectives. The purpose for this study was to analyze monitoring and evaluation practices on the performance of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Kiambu County in Kenya. The three main research objectives of this research are; the monitoring and evaluation planning practice; the monitoring and evaluation technical skills practice, and the participatory monitoring and evaluation practice on the performance of NGO’s in Kiambu County. This study utilized a descriptive investigative approach, with a sample size of 210 being non-governmental employees drawn from; Monitoring and evaluation officers, Project managers, and Stakeholder representatives out of a target population of 441. The tool for data analysis was the statistical package for social science version 26 and the results obtained were presented using tables and figures. The results of regression evaluation of monitoring and evaluation depicted a very strong connection between monitoring and evaluation planning practice and non-governmental organizations' project performance. The results of monitoring and evaluation of technical skill illustrated a positive connection between monitoring and evaluation of technical skill practice and non-governmental organizations' project performance. Further, the findings on Participatory monitoring and evaluation represented a confident connection between Participatory monitoring and evaluation practice and non-governmental organizations' project performance. Regression analysis results indicated that monitoring and evaluation planning practice; the monitoring and evaluation technical skills practice, and the participatory monitoring and evaluation practice positively and significantly impact the project performance of non-governmental organizational In Kiambu County, Kenya. This study therefore concluded that monitoring and evaluation planning practice; the monitoring and evaluation technical skills practice, and the participatory monitoring and evaluation practice positively and significantly impact the project performance of non-governmental organizational In Kiambu County, Kenya. This study recommends non-governmental organizational In Kiambu County, Kenya to pay particular attention to participatory monitoring and evaluation practice by focusing on those strategies that embrace participatory approaches, to create more inclusive and impactful M&E processes that contribute to sustainable development and positive change within communities. The findings in this research study will benefit, scholars, M&E practitioners, programme managers, government institutions, project stakeholders, and donor community in proper integration of the monitoring and evaluation practices for project performance.

Data-Driven Fundraising: Strategic Plan for Medical Education.

Higher education institutions, including medical schools, increasingly rely on fundraising to bridge funding gaps and support their missions. This paper presents a viewpoint on data-driven strategies in fundraising, outlining a 4-step approach for effective planning while considering ethical implications. It outlines a 4-step approach to creating an effective, end-to-end, data-driven fundraising plan, emphasizing the crucial stages of data collection, data analysis, goal establishment, and targeted strategy formulation. By leveraging internal and external data, schools can create tailored outreach initiatives that resonate with potential donors. However, the fundraising process must be grounded in ethical considerations. Ethical challenges, particularly in fundraising with grateful medical patients, necessitate transparent and honest practices prioritizing donors' and beneficiaries' rights and safeguarding public trust. This paper presents a viewpoint on the critical role of data-driven strategies in fundraising for medical education. It emphasizes integrating comprehensive data analysis with ethical considerations to enhance fundraising efforts in medical schools. By integrating data analytics with fundraising best practices and ensuring ethical practice, medical institutions can ensure financial support and foster enduring, trust-based relationships with their donor communities.

The Impact of Ethnicity on Research Authorization at the Time of Organ Donation: A Single-Center Experience Among Deceased Donor Kidney Transplantation.

Research on deceased organ donors is needed to expand the donor organ supply. Little is known about the rate of research authorization among various groups. We aimed to determine the percentage of research authorization by the deceased donor family across different donor characteristics. We performed a retrospective review of deceased donors referred to one U.S. institution for kidney transplantation over a 12-month period. Organs were offered from multiple organ procurement organizations (OPO) across the United States. Stepwise logistic regression was performed to determine the predictors of research authorization. From 10/2018 to 10/2019, 437 deceased donors were accepted for transplantation. 81.5% came from OPOs outside our donor service area and 18.5% from our local OPO. Overall, research authorization was declined in 24.0% of donors. Declined authorization was highest among Black donors (42.0%) compared to Whites (16.3%) and Hispanics (26.9%); p=0.000006. Donors <35 years had highest declined research authorization at 42.9% compared to older donors. There were no significant differences between individual OPOs. Deceased donor research authorization declined at the time of organ donation is higher among Black and younger donors. There is an immediate need for the transplant and donor community to develop best-practices to eliminate barriers to research in organ transplantation.

A Sense of Connectedness in Reproductive Donation. Contrasting Policy With Donor and Donor Kin Lived Experience

This article asks how well new developments in family life are reflected in law and policy, with a particular focus on donor conception. There has been an unprecedented ‘opening up’ of family life in recent decades; this increased diversity is, at least in part, linked to developments in reproductive technologies, including gamete donation. In family lives touched by donation, genetic relations with ‘donor connections’ take genetic connectedness beyond traditional notions of kinship. There is not yet an established social script for how to understand what constitutes meaningful connectedness in reproductive donation. Focussing on the UK context specifically, where assisted conception is highly regulated, this article examines on the one hand, how UK law and policy portray meaningful connectedness in the context of donation, and, on the other hand, how well this fits with connectedness as experienced within egg and sperm donor communities. Drawing on original data from UK law and policy analysis, and empirical interview data with egg and sperm donors and their kin, our analysis shows important disparities between law and policy, and the empirical evidence, suggesting a need for an overhaul of UK donor conception law and policy.

Psychological ownership and identity motives in blood donation.

Interventions to retain existing donors are essential to increase the blood supply. Blood donor self-identity is proposed to motivate sustained donation behaviour. However, interventions to develop self-identity in the absence of donating blood are scarce. We propose that experiencing psychological ownership of a blood collection agency (BCA) may provide a potential avenue for fostering donor self-identity and subsequent sustained donation behaviour. Two hundred and fifty-five donor participants were recruited through Prolific Academic (n = 175) and an Australian online blood donor community group (n = 80), with an additional 252 non-donors recruited through Prolific Academic. Participants completed an online survey assessing donation behaviour, perceived psychological ownership of a BCA, self-identity and intentions to donate blood, amongst other constructs. Consistent with our theoretical argument, psychological ownership was positively associated with self-identity, which, in turn, was positively associated with intentions to donate blood. Donation behaviour was positively associated with psychological ownership. Examination of psychological ownership by donation experience showed the expected relationship with committed donors having the strongest psychological ownership and non-donors having the weakest psychological ownership over a BCA. We provide initial support for the inclusion of psychological ownership within a model of sustained blood donation behaviour.

Preventing/countering violent and hateful extremism in Morocco and Tunisia – understanding the role of civil society and international assistance

ABSTRACT In light of the growing threat of violent and hateful extremism in North Africa, the international donor community has recently shifted its focus of attention towards civil society organisations (CSOs) as an important ally in contemporary P/CVE efforts. This has resulted in a growing number of local and international NGOs implementing P/CVE-related projects in Tunisia and Morocco. However, the lack of comprehensive empirical research on local CSOs engagement in P/CVE-efforts complicates the assessment of scope and impact of these initiatives. Little attention has been devoted to the perspective of front-line workers and the ways global P/CVE-policies are being reproduced and challenged on the ground. This paper aims to contribute to a broader understanding of challenges employees of local and international NGOs face in implementing P/CVE in non-Western contexts. Drawing on peacebuilding and development literature, it focuses on the experiences and practices of these actors and their interplay with the international donor community. 30 in-depth narrative interviews with local practitioners and international experts root this paper in rich empirical data that was analysed using Grounded Theory methodology.

Analysis of adoption of conservation agriculture practices in southern Africa: mixed-methods approach

In southern Africa, conservation agriculture (CA) has been promoted to address low agricultural productivity, food insecurity, and land degradation. However, despite significant experimental evidence on the agronomic and economic benefits of CA and large scale investments by the donor community and national governments, adoption rates among smallholders remain below expectation. The main objective of this research project was thus to investigate why previous efforts and investments to scale CA technologies and practices in southern Africa have not led to widespread adoption. The paper applies a multivariate probit model and other methods to survey data from 4,373 households and 278 focus groups to identify the drivers and barriers of CA adoption in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The results show that declining soil fertility is a major constraint to maize production in Zambia and Malawi, and drought/heat is more pronounced in Zimbabwe. We also find gaps between (a) awareness and adoption, (b) training and adoption, and (c) demonstration and adoption rates of CA practices in all three countries. The gaps are much bigger between awareness and adoption and much smaller between hosting demonstration and adoption, suggesting that much of the awareness of CA practices has not translated to greater adoption. Training and demonstrations are better conduits to enhance adoption than mere awareness creation. Therefore, demonstrating the applications and benefits of CA practices is critical for promoting CA practices in all countries. Besides, greater adoption of CA practices requires enhancing farmers’ access to inputs, addressing drudgery associated with CA implementation, enhancing farmers’ technical know-how, and enacting and enforcing community bylaws regarding livestock grazing and wildfires. The paper concludes by discussing the implications for policy and investments in CA promotion.

How transparent are aid agencies to their citizens? Introducing the Citizen Aid Transparency Dataset

AbstractExisting measures of aid transparency overwhelmingly focus on how much information donor agencies are willing to share with the international donor community, overlooking that transparency is about increasing citizens' access to information in order to improve government accountability. In this article, we present the Citizen Aid Transparency Dataset (CATD). Using factor and correlation analysis, we show that the CATD captures a different dimension of transparency than existing transparency measures. We also show that aid agency transparency varies both within and between donor countries and that there are important quality differences between agencies in the timeliness, breadth, depth and accessibility of the data provided.

Gulf responses to Syrian refugee arrivals in Lebanon: narratives of legitimisation

This paper focuses on Gulf states’ responses to Syrian arrivals in Lebanon since 2011. It explores the dynamics of aid governance of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. Among the international donor community and scholars, a widespread narrative stigmatises Gulf humanitarian donorship as being the result of Gulf states’ strategic choices. In the particular case of Lebanon, this narrative posits that they have been using aid to support Syrian opposition groups and to promote political alliances. With a constructivist perspective, this paper assesses the existence of alternative narratives discrediting these claims. By looking at the everyday experiences of humanitarian professionals in Lebanon, it analyses discursive narratives of legitimisation taking shape at the field level, among observers and participants of Gulf interventions, and challenges conventional narratives on Gulf donorship as purely politically motivated. The research has revealed a narrative of religious humanitarianism legitimising Gulf support by presenting it as the result of a moral necessity; legitimisation through identification with legitimate symbols such as ‘the local’; and ‘pragmatic’ legitimisation praising their visibility on the field and their concrete efficiency.

Barriers and enablers for engagement in a new aquaculture activity: An example from seaweed initiatives in Samoa

Adoption of any new agriculture or aquaculture technology by intended beneficiary farmers is not a simple process. Typically, new technologies and new activities have been delivered to farmers through a ‘technology-push’, designed and supported by governments, non-government organisations and donor community, yet rates of adoption are disappointingly low. In this paper we set out to explore barriers and enablers for engagement in a new aquaculture activity, as perceived by the intended farmers. Our example is of ‘technology-push’ towards seaweed farming in coastal villages in Samoa. To increase the likelihood of greater adoption in the future, we explored perceptions of the intended beneficiaries by conducting 20 focus group discussions with 135 women and men, in 10 villages. Specifically, we explored their perceptions of seaweed as an industry, as well as perceptions of barriers and enablers linked to the key market system components: core production functions (inputs and outputs); supporting functions (such as transport, finance, training); institutional barriers; and personal agency. We found that a set of inputs seen as ‘essential’ was much broader than inputs suggested in market systems studies. Essential inputs included not only materials, tools, equipment and labour, but also extended to include information, knowledge and skills; farm governance and protection of the farms; personal agency; and environmental context. What emerged from our data is a clear division of what participants saw as solutions that can be resolved by them (such as arranging informal institutions) versus solutions that need to be provided externally (such as tools, skills, financing and markets) for which the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries was seen as the key external provider. We suggest that, when introducing new activities or technologies, adequate time and effort needs to be put into (a) finding out what essential inputs for the potential beneficiaries of the activity are; and (b) providing them with such inputs in pre-planned manner.

From MPOX to the next epidemic: Words matter when talking about equity-deserving groups.

From MPOX to the next epidemic: Words matter when talking about equity-deserving groups.

Women Legislators in Africa and Foreign Aid

Abstract There has been a significant rise in the share of women legislators in Africa. What makes this fact puzzling is that it cannot be attributed to an African electorate that values gender equality and having women in political leadership positions. In stark contrast to this, gender equality and women’s empowerment have successively moved up in the priority list of the international donor community over the last two decades. This raises the question of whether there is a relationship between women legislators in Africa and foreign-aid allocations. This study finds a strong and statistically robust relationship: an increase in the share of women legislators from 15 to 20 percent is associated with an increase of about 4 percent in aid conditional on current levels of aid. Additionally, the study finds that democratic countries receive more aid but does not find an interaction effect between democracy and the share of women legislators, which suggests that donors do not tailor their gender-selective aid towards more democratic countries. The results provide evidence in support of aid selectivity for policies that improve gender equality in aid-recipient countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The portrayal of organ donation on TikTok: A content analysis of popular English-language TikTok videos.

TikTok is one of the most popular social media platforms and plays a role in shaping public perceptions. This research examined how organ donation was portrayed on the platform. We built a dataset of the most popular English-language TikTok videos that used the hashtags #organdonor or #organdonation. We then performed content analysis on the 400 most viewed videos after limiting data set inclusion to one video per user account. The finalized videos (N = 313) had generated nearly 80 million views and 10 million likes. Featuring both donors (56.2%) and recipients (44.1%), videos shared experiences that celebrated and lamented lost donor lives (41.8%) while also celebrating transplantation successes (31.3%). Very few videos included public solicitation (2.9%). Common video traits included detailing medical procedures (45.4%), presenting honor walks (10.9%), and displaying donors and recipients connecting or wanting to connect (16.9%). Videos mostly had a positive (74.1%) versus negative (10.2%) leaning tone. Far from superficially glamorizing organ donation/transplantation processes and procedures, popular English-language TikTok videos depicted what we perceived as highly emotional and expository experiences. While the videos likely offered learning and cathartic opportunities for individuals and communities, they also highlight some tensions between personal anecdotes and data/research. Findings from this research can inform public outreach efforts as well as policies related to protecting anonymity and celebrating donors with honor walks. Indeed, given TikTok's increasing popularity and influence, it could be a valuable tool to meaningfully learn from, and engage with, patient and donor communities.

The Role and Effectiveness of the Cooperative Business Model in Economic Recovery Strategy and Resilience Building Post-Covid-19: A Co-operative solution to disasters

Whereas economic crises often require co-operative approaches to stabilize, recover and revive the free market system, Covid-19 has triggered a new debate regarding the role of the cooperative business model in the resilience of enterprises and economies. A major question donor community and development partners interested in private sector approach to resilience are asking is whether to go through Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) or cooperatives. The cooperative enterprise has been disparaged as an ineffective, non-attractive business model compared to the competitive enterprise MSME model. The main objective of the study was to assess the performance and effectiveness of the cooperative model vis-à-vis MSME model in supporting economic recovery and resilience building post-shocks. The study, based on Systems Theory, adopted a historical scoping research design and used a literature review approach. The findings revealed that economic recovery models that seek to recover, restore, and revive a collapsed capitalist system are mostly “co-operative” in nature, and are critical in stabilizing fragile economic systems. The cooperative business model: (i) is robust enough to rescue economies from collapse and reverse economic fortunes, and (ii) has capacity challenges in cooperative governance that need to be addressed for the model to effectively contribute to resilience building in future. Economic recovery from Covid-19 should focus on addressing capacity challenges in cooperative governance and establishing ‘Marshall Plan Style’ programme to strengthen their role in fostering economic resilience. The focus should be on levels of capitalisation of cooperatives, strengthened governance and cooperative entrepreneurship, ensuring robust oversight to cushion members, and de-risking them from the threat of governance-induced collapse, erring on the side of appropriate response in times of crises.

Sustainable and inclusive development of finfish mariculture in Cambodia: Perceived barriers to engagement and expansion

Finfish mariculture, dominated by production of Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer), is of high economic importance in Cambodia and is providing substantial benefits to engaged communities in coastal areas. Using semi-structured face-to-face interviews, we explore perceived barriers to engagement in the industry in three coastal districts of Cambodia where such farming is undertaken. We explore obstacles faced by current finfish mariculture value chain actors, eliciting perceptions of 56 female and male current participants. We also elicit perceptions of the industry entry restrictions by interviewing 62 men and women in the same communities, but who are currently not engaged in finfish mariculture. Specifically including men, women, youths and religion in the study sample, we also tested for potential differences in perceptions of the barriers based on demographic characteristics. The most pertinent areas for strengthening the value chain were identified by participants as: Strengthening training and technical support services; Improving availability of good quality fingerlings; Promoting compounded feeds to replace ‘trash’ fish; and Supporting value chain inclusivity, development and diversification. The most common obstacles to entry into the industry were reported as lack of: Finance and financial support; Security of access to land and water; Technical support services and experience; and Time and available labour. Barriers and participant needs identified in this study indicate a set of emerging priorities for both the Cambodian Fisheries Administration and the international donor community.

Temporary establishment of bacteria from indoor plant leaves and soil on human skin

BackgroundPlants are found in a large percentage of indoor environments, yet the potential for bacteria associated with indoor plant leaves and soil to colonize human skin remains unclear. We report results of experiments in a controlled climate chamber to characterize bacterial communities inhabiting the substrates and leaves of five indoor plant species, and quantify microbial transfer dynamics and residence times on human skin following simulated touch contact events. Controlled bacterial propagule transfer events with soil and leaf donors were applied to the arms of human occupants and repeatedly measured over a 24-h period using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing.ResultsSubstrate samples had greater biomass and alpha diversity compared to leaves and baseline skin bacterial communities, as well as dissimilar taxonomic compositions. Despite these differences in donor community diversity and biomass, we observed repeatable patterns in the dynamics of transfer events. Recipient human skin bacterial communities increased in alpha diversity and became more similar to donor communities, an effect which, for soil contact only, persisted for at least 24 h. Washing with soap and water effectively returned communities to their pre-perturbed state, although some abundant soil taxa resisted removal through washing.ConclusionsThis study represents an initial characterization of bacterial relationships between humans and indoor plants, which represent a potentially valuable element of biodiversity in the built environment. Although environmental microbiota are unlikely to permanently colonize skin following a single contact event, repeated or continuous exposures to indoor biodiversity may be increasingly relevant for the functioning and diversity of the human microbiome as urbanization continues.

To Assess the Iron Reserves in Blood Donors by Measuring Serum Ferritin and Hemoglobin in the Children Hospital Lahore

Introduction: Frequent contribution of blood can cause iron exhaustion in blood donors along with the problems related to it. Curtailing the proportion of iron reduction among blood donors is a crucial plan for boosting donor’s well-being. Aim &amp; objectives: The aim of this analysis is to determine iron stocks by measuring serum ferritin in pre-donation male blood donors along with their relation with the hemoglobin concentration and frequency of blood donations. Study design: Cross-sectional study. Place and duration: Pathology (immunohematology) department and blood bank of University of Child Health Sciences, The Children Hospital Lahore from Aug 2021 to July 2022 Material and Methods: A total of 350 serum samples were processed to determine hemoglobin and serum ferritin concentrations. The study involved was performed on healthy blood donors. The method used was chemiluminescence for the simultaneous measurement of serum ferritin. Results: An aggregate of 350 serums were collected from the contributors in blood bank. Among them, 154 were the first-time donor and 196 were the frequent donors; the serum ferritin was markedly reduced in constant contributors. The mean value 105ng/mL was found in infrequent donors and 79.35ng/mL was found in frequent donors. There was no notable variance in hemoglobin of newbie and regular blood givers. However, a momentous variation in the pervasiveness of iron depletion between first‑time and regular donors is found. Conclusion: Blood donation has a noteworthy impact on iron stores and is one of the most important factors for iron shortage in contributors, specifically in those who donate blood again and again. Serum ferritin measurement ought to be incorporated in the blood donor preference especially in the evaluation of consistent blood givers to assure enough iron pools in the donor community in order to sustain a pertinent potential donor.

Assessing the impact of aid on public health expenditure in aid recipient countries

SummaryMotivationThe relationship between aid flows and recipients' spending on health is an important component of the ongoing attempt to measure and improve aid effectiveness.PurposeThis article aims to reveal complex interactions occurring between donors, who use surveillance and monitoring to ensure that their aid is effective, and recipients who are pursuing individual political survival in conjunction with national development.Methods and approachThis study applies a fixed‐effects model to a dataset of 111 aid recipients from 2000–2018.FindingsThis study finds that the impact of democracy, government effectiveness, and political stability on public health spending declines as more aid is introduced.Policy implicationsThe findings suggest that aid could lead to reductions in health expenditure when the donor community’s surveillance focuses more on risky or untrustworthy recipients and indirectly creates incentives for good recipients to divert funding away from the health sector.