What does it take to implement life-saving public health programs in the Middle East and Africa? In this episode of GFN Insights, Amjad Malaeb from MENAHRA shares the critical challenges and breakthroughs of harm reduction in this region.
In this interview, public health expert Amjad Malaeb dives into his five-year journey working with the Middle East and North Africa Harm Reduction Association (MENAHRA). Amjad discusses how the organization has expanded its scope from HIV-focused harm reduction for people who use drugs to a holistic healthcare approach addressing tuberculosis (TB) and hepatitis. Discover the harsh realities of navigating complex political and security landscapes, the critical role of stakeholder and community engagement, and how the Global Fund MENA Learning Hub is empowering local communities with essential knowledge.
Transcription:
00:00 - 00:11
[Joanna Junak]
Amjad, you work for the Middle East and North Africa Harm Reduction Association. So, how did you come to dedicate your career to MENAHRA and public health?
00:12 - 00:55
[Amjad Malaeb]
yeah so basically i'm a public health and development sciences graduate so my my initial work started with public health and my initial enthusiasm enthusiasm began with public health and when the opportunity came to be working with MENAHRA on an opportunity to be supporting people who use drugs or people vulnerable populations or key vulnerable populations, specifically on a regional level, such as the MENA region, it was a great opportunity for me. So this is where I decided to step in and to go into this path. And I have been working with MENAHRA for the past five years. So now it's more of a lifetime work. Yeah.
00:55 - 01:01
[Joanna Junak]
OK, so what's the biggest challenge in coordinating public health programs in the MENA region?
01:02 - 01:40
[Amjad Malaeb]
Well, being in the MENA region, there's so many challenges, so many obstacles. First of all, the political situation within the MENA region, you know, every day there's so many updates, so many challenges politically, security, so many challenges. So these are the main ones. Other than that, the public health, challenges that we face are regarding the updates, the staying up to date with all the latest information and being there to actually implement activities based on these needs, based on these challenges for our communities. So these are the most important challenges that we face.
01:41 - 01:46
[Joanna Junak]
Okay, so could you outline the key programs MENAHRA is currently working on?
01:47 - 02:36
[Amjad Malaeb]
Yes, so as MENAHRA we're focusing on harm reduction specifically for people who use drugs and its correlation with HIV but recently we have widened our scope we're working on tuberculosis as well and hepatitis We're working on holistic approach for care, for healthcare specifically, and we are pushing and advocating for the introduction of new harm reduction strategies in the MENA region because this will give the people who use drugs the ability to attain the best healthcare services available. Also, as MENAHRA, we're hosting the Global Fund MENA Learning Hub. Actually, we're co-hosting this. So which is a platform for communities to get the latest knowledge on the global fund processes and procedures.
02:37 - 02:45
[Joanna Junak]
Okay. And what most often determines whether a project succeeds or fails in this region?
02:46 - 03:19
[Amjad Malaeb]
As discussed before, the challenges, the political and security challenges are one of the most determinants that actually says if this is going to happen or not, any activity. And the other thing would be the planning, the proper planning of any activity and engaging the stakeholders, all stakeholders, specifically community members and going up to people in the leadership or decision making level.
03:21 - 03:21
[Joanna Junak]
Thank you so much.
03:21 - 03:23
[Amjad Malaeb]
Thank you very much for this opportunity.