BackgroundAccess to mobile phone technology has rapidly expanded in developing countries. In Africa, mHealth is a relatively new concept and questions arise regarding reliability of the technology used for health outcomes. This review documents strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of mHealth projects in Africa.MethodsA systematic review of peer-reviewed literature on mHealth projects in Africa, between 2003 and 2013, was carried out using PubMed and OvidSP. Data was synthesized using a SWOT analysis methodology. Results were grouped to assess specific aspects of project implementation in terms of sustainability and mid/long-term results, integration to the health system, management process, scale-up and replication, and legal issues, regulations and standards.ResultsForty-four studies on mHealth projects in Africa were included and classified as: “patient follow-up and medication adherence” (n = 19), “staff training, support and motivation” (n = 2), “staff evaluation, monitoring and guidelines compliance” (n = 4), “drug supply-chain and stock management” (n = 2), “patient education and awareness” (n = 1), “disease surveillance and intervention monitoring” (n = 4), “data collection/transfer and reporting” (n = 10) and “overview of mHealth projects” (n = 2). In general, mHealth projects demonstrate positive health-related outcomes and their success is based on the accessibility, acceptance and low-cost of the technology, effective adaptation to local contexts, strong stakeholder collaboration, and government involvement. Threats such as dependency on funding, unclear healthcare system responsibilities, unreliable infrastructure and lack of evidence on cost-effectiveness challenge their implementation. mHealth projects can potentially be scaled-up to help tackle problems faced by healthcare systems like poor management of drug stocks, weak surveillance and reporting systems or lack of resources.ConclusionsmHealth in Africa is an innovative approach to delivering health services. In this fast-growing technological field, research opportunities include assessing implications of scaling-up mHealth projects, evaluating cost-effectiveness and impacts on the overall health system.

Malnutrition is a challenge to the health and productivity of populations and is viewed as one of the five largest adverse health impacts of climate change. Nonetheless, systematic evidence quantifying these impacts is currently limited. Our aim was to assess the scientific evidence base for the impact of climate change on childhood undernutrition (particularly stunting) in subsistence farmers in low-and middle-income countries. A systematic review was conducted to identify peer-reviewed and gray full-text documents in English with no limits for year of publication or study design. Fifteen manuscripts were reviewed. Few studies use primary data to investigate the proportion of stunting that can be attributed to climate/ weather variability. Although scattered and limited, current evidence suggests a significant but variable link between weather variables, e.g., rainfall, extreme weather events (floods/droughts), seasonality, and temperature, and childhood stunting at the household level (12 of 15 studies, 80%). In addition, we note that agricultural, socioeconomic, and demographic factors at the household and individual levels also play substantial roles in mediating the nutritional impacts. Comparable interdisciplinary studies based on primary data at a household level are urgently required to guide effective adaptation, particularly for rural subsistence farmers. Systemization of data collection at the global level is indispensable and urgent. We need to assimilate data from long-term, high-quality agricultural, environmental, socioeconomic, health, and demographic surveillance systems and develop robust statistical methods to establish and validate causal links, quantify impacts, and make reliable predictions that can guide evidence-based health interventions in the future.climate change | weather variability | malnutrition | childhood undernutrition | crop yield

Additive Manufacturing or 3 D printing is radically changing the way products are designed and manufactured. The humanitarian sector has started exploring how 3 D printing can help match supply with the global rise in humanitarian needs. However, there has been very little academic research in the field. This study aims to bridge this gap by reviewing twelve case studies of 3 D printed products to examine the effects of 3 D printing on the humanitarian supply chain. The findings reveal four supply chain archetypes, which demonstrate that 3 D printing is impacting the humanitarian supply chain with respects to networks, governance, processes and products. We compare the benefits and challenges of these archetypes to contest that 3 D printing will not necessarily simplify and shorten the supply chain. Instead, we suggest the need for a holistic supply chain approach that includes the local production of 3 D printers and filament, alongside local design and manufacture. This much-needed study provides the foundations for future academic research and offers relevant guidance for practitioners using 3 D printing in the humanitarian sector.

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