The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused devastating consequences across economies in the world, ... more The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused devastating consequences across economies in the world, with substantial effects on lives and livelihoods. Cameroon has been one of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa with an increasing number of cases and fatalities from the disease. In an effort to support the government’s response to the epidemic, the Cameroon Bioethics Initiative (CAMBIN); a not-for-profit, non-governmental, non-political, non-discriminatory, multidisciplinary association issued a statement on COVID-19, primarily targeting the government and the general public. In this article, we situate the context within which the statement was issued and present the statement in its entirety.
Circumcision, by which I mean any surgical intervention on the genitals of a human being for cult... more Circumcision, by which I mean any surgical intervention on the genitals of a human being for cultural, religious, or purely secular and profane reasons, has recently become a highly controversial issue reminiscent of such other issues as the abortion debate. Pro-circumcisionists have marshalled as many arguments in its favour as anti-circumcisionists have marshalled against it. Quite interestingly, both sides have
Publisher: Langaa RPCIG Langaa Research & Publishing Common Initiative Group PO Box 902 Mankon Ba... more Publisher: Langaa RPCIG Langaa Research & Publishing Common Initiative Group PO Box 902 Mankon Bamenda North West Region Cameroon Langaagrp@gmail.comwww.langaa-rpcig.net Distributed outside N. America by African Books Collective orders@ ...
... made, all mutually self reinforcing and self-sustaining: famine, drought, war, civil strife, ... more ... made, all mutually self reinforcing and self-sustaining: famine, drought, war, civil strife, epidemics ... The war lasted exactly forty days during which canon and machine gun fire taught the ... Kamerun has a standing dispute, which occasionally breaks out in open armed conflict, with ...
Socio-cultural Dimensions of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Africa, 2019
The World Health Organization (WHO) is the global public health arm of the United Nations Organiz... more The World Health Organization (WHO) is the global public health arm of the United Nations Organization (UNO). It came formally into existence with the adoption of its Constitution on 7 April 1948, a day now celebrated the world over as World Health day. Because of the indisputable importance of health for human welfare, well-being, flourishing, and the capacity to enjoy the other goods of human life, the WHO is arguably the most important branch or agency of the UNO. The power and influence of the WHO is evident in all countries of the world, and health ministries, as well as medical practitioners, obey it like an oracle and quote its instructions and recommendations with finality. As far as medical science and practice are concerned, the WHO is the foremost regulatory authority in the world.
During public health emergencies (PHEs), data are collected and generated from a variety of activ... more During public health emergencies (PHEs), data are collected and generated from a variety of activities and sources, including but not limited to national public health programs, research and community-based activities. It is critical that these data are rapidly shared in order to facilitate the public health response, epidemic preparedness, as well as research during and after the epidemic. Nonetheless, collecting and sharing data during PHEs can be challenging, especially where there are limited resources for public health and research-related activities. In a symposium that brought together different stakeholders that were involved in the 2013-2016 Ebola outbreaks in West Africa, meeting attendees shared their perspectives on the values and management of data during PHEs in sub-Saharan Africa. Key factors that could inform and facilitate data management during PHEs in sub-Saharan Africa were discussed, including using data to inform policy decisions and healthcare; a coordinated d...
"Philosophy is often defined as ‘love of wisdom’ and anyone without such love would not be s... more "Philosophy is often defined as ‘love of wisdom’ and anyone without such love would not be studying philosophy and although philosophy is not one of the ‘bread and butter’ disciplines students scramble for in quest of a lucrative career, it tends to fascinate and draw in on experimental or accidental contact, and I think that was the case with me." -- Godfrey Tangwa "What I would want to pass on to my students and non-students alike is the thought that philosophy is nothing more and nothing less than critically reflecting on issues, using all the devices and techniques philosophers have employed through the ages and, that being the case, it is indefensible philosophizing on issues that concern other peoples and their cultures, let alone philosophizing on their thoughts and pronouncements, to the neglect of those which concern own peoples and culture. In other words, I am recommending a very practical impulse and purpose for philosophy, which uses all available philosophical tools in addressing and tackling problems, beginning with those nearest to heart and home. Philosophical ideas, concepts and theories that have no applicability in context should not be the mainstay concern of African philosophers. To the extent that an African is mainly concerned with philosophical ideas and issues that have no relevance or applicability in the African context, to that very extent can it be said that s/he may be an African philosopher but his/her philosophy is not qualifiable as African philosophy." -- Godfrey Tangwa
The essays collected in this volume are, by the depth of their analysis and the breath of their v... more The essays collected in this volume are, by the depth of their analysis and the breath of their vision, indeed 'No Trifling Matter'. They are a chronicle of the events in contemporary Cameroonian society, especially as concerns the conduct of public affairs therein. Over and above its relevance for our own time, this chronicle will, in the decades that lie ahead, serve as a rich source of information, opinion and comment which future generations, anxious to understand the making of an era whose impact, positive or negative, is destined to survive long after the longest-living of its principal actors and actresses shall have disappeared from the face of the Earth, will find a great benefit. Rotcod Gobata has, through these essays, lit and placed on a pedestal, a candle whose flame shall never die and whose glow shall serve as a beacon to guide and to inspire generations yet unborn
Socio-cultural Dimensions of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Africa, 2019
The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, which started on December 2013, but commonly known as the... more The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, which started on December 2013, but commonly known as the 2014 Ebola outbreak led to an urgent need for effective and affordable treatment options for Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). While there are a number of experimental drugs for the treatment of EVD, there is also a parallel interest in the use of human convalescent blood or plasma for the treatment of EVD as well as a post-exposure prophylaxis. The use of human convalescent plasma as a form of therapy in an epidemic situation has its challenges and raises a number of socio-cultural issues that need to be taken into consideration when planning interventions. In this chapter, we discuss these socio-cultural concerns and challenges. We also suggest that the successful use of convalescent plasma for therapy or as a post exposure prophylaxis, would require: active community engagement; effective public education; collaborations that are equitable; and building trust between the general public and other stakeholders (researchers, funders, civil societies, healthcare workers and humanitarian organizations) involved in trials on human convalescent therapy.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused devastating consequences across economies in the world, ... more The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused devastating consequences across economies in the world, with substantial effects on lives and livelihoods. Cameroon has been one of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa with an increasing number of cases and fatalities from the disease. In an effort to support the government’s response to the epidemic, the Cameroon Bioethics Initiative (CAMBIN); a not-for-profit, non-governmental, non-political, non-discriminatory, multidisciplinary association issued a statement on COVID-19, primarily targeting the government and the general public. In this article, we situate the context within which the statement was issued and present the statement in its entirety.
Circumcision, by which I mean any surgical intervention on the genitals of a human being for cult... more Circumcision, by which I mean any surgical intervention on the genitals of a human being for cultural, religious, or purely secular and profane reasons, has recently become a highly controversial issue reminiscent of such other issues as the abortion debate. Pro-circumcisionists have marshalled as many arguments in its favour as anti-circumcisionists have marshalled against it. Quite interestingly, both sides have
Publisher: Langaa RPCIG Langaa Research & Publishing Common Initiative Group PO Box 902 Mankon Ba... more Publisher: Langaa RPCIG Langaa Research & Publishing Common Initiative Group PO Box 902 Mankon Bamenda North West Region Cameroon Langaagrp@gmail.comwww.langaa-rpcig.net Distributed outside N. America by African Books Collective orders@ ...
... made, all mutually self reinforcing and self-sustaining: famine, drought, war, civil strife, ... more ... made, all mutually self reinforcing and self-sustaining: famine, drought, war, civil strife, epidemics ... The war lasted exactly forty days during which canon and machine gun fire taught the ... Kamerun has a standing dispute, which occasionally breaks out in open armed conflict, with ...
Socio-cultural Dimensions of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Africa, 2019
The World Health Organization (WHO) is the global public health arm of the United Nations Organiz... more The World Health Organization (WHO) is the global public health arm of the United Nations Organization (UNO). It came formally into existence with the adoption of its Constitution on 7 April 1948, a day now celebrated the world over as World Health day. Because of the indisputable importance of health for human welfare, well-being, flourishing, and the capacity to enjoy the other goods of human life, the WHO is arguably the most important branch or agency of the UNO. The power and influence of the WHO is evident in all countries of the world, and health ministries, as well as medical practitioners, obey it like an oracle and quote its instructions and recommendations with finality. As far as medical science and practice are concerned, the WHO is the foremost regulatory authority in the world.
During public health emergencies (PHEs), data are collected and generated from a variety of activ... more During public health emergencies (PHEs), data are collected and generated from a variety of activities and sources, including but not limited to national public health programs, research and community-based activities. It is critical that these data are rapidly shared in order to facilitate the public health response, epidemic preparedness, as well as research during and after the epidemic. Nonetheless, collecting and sharing data during PHEs can be challenging, especially where there are limited resources for public health and research-related activities. In a symposium that brought together different stakeholders that were involved in the 2013-2016 Ebola outbreaks in West Africa, meeting attendees shared their perspectives on the values and management of data during PHEs in sub-Saharan Africa. Key factors that could inform and facilitate data management during PHEs in sub-Saharan Africa were discussed, including using data to inform policy decisions and healthcare; a coordinated d...
"Philosophy is often defined as ‘love of wisdom’ and anyone without such love would not be s... more "Philosophy is often defined as ‘love of wisdom’ and anyone without such love would not be studying philosophy and although philosophy is not one of the ‘bread and butter’ disciplines students scramble for in quest of a lucrative career, it tends to fascinate and draw in on experimental or accidental contact, and I think that was the case with me." -- Godfrey Tangwa "What I would want to pass on to my students and non-students alike is the thought that philosophy is nothing more and nothing less than critically reflecting on issues, using all the devices and techniques philosophers have employed through the ages and, that being the case, it is indefensible philosophizing on issues that concern other peoples and their cultures, let alone philosophizing on their thoughts and pronouncements, to the neglect of those which concern own peoples and culture. In other words, I am recommending a very practical impulse and purpose for philosophy, which uses all available philosophical tools in addressing and tackling problems, beginning with those nearest to heart and home. Philosophical ideas, concepts and theories that have no applicability in context should not be the mainstay concern of African philosophers. To the extent that an African is mainly concerned with philosophical ideas and issues that have no relevance or applicability in the African context, to that very extent can it be said that s/he may be an African philosopher but his/her philosophy is not qualifiable as African philosophy." -- Godfrey Tangwa
The essays collected in this volume are, by the depth of their analysis and the breath of their v... more The essays collected in this volume are, by the depth of their analysis and the breath of their vision, indeed 'No Trifling Matter'. They are a chronicle of the events in contemporary Cameroonian society, especially as concerns the conduct of public affairs therein. Over and above its relevance for our own time, this chronicle will, in the decades that lie ahead, serve as a rich source of information, opinion and comment which future generations, anxious to understand the making of an era whose impact, positive or negative, is destined to survive long after the longest-living of its principal actors and actresses shall have disappeared from the face of the Earth, will find a great benefit. Rotcod Gobata has, through these essays, lit and placed on a pedestal, a candle whose flame shall never die and whose glow shall serve as a beacon to guide and to inspire generations yet unborn
Socio-cultural Dimensions of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Africa, 2019
The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, which started on December 2013, but commonly known as the... more The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, which started on December 2013, but commonly known as the 2014 Ebola outbreak led to an urgent need for effective and affordable treatment options for Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). While there are a number of experimental drugs for the treatment of EVD, there is also a parallel interest in the use of human convalescent blood or plasma for the treatment of EVD as well as a post-exposure prophylaxis. The use of human convalescent plasma as a form of therapy in an epidemic situation has its challenges and raises a number of socio-cultural issues that need to be taken into consideration when planning interventions. In this chapter, we discuss these socio-cultural concerns and challenges. We also suggest that the successful use of convalescent plasma for therapy or as a post exposure prophylaxis, would require: active community engagement; effective public education; collaborations that are equitable; and building trust between the general public and other stakeholders (researchers, funders, civil societies, healthcare workers and humanitarian organizations) involved in trials on human convalescent therapy.
We seek to clarify and assess the underlying moral reasons for opposing all medically unnecessary... more We seek to clarify and assess the underlying moral reasons for opposing all medically unnecessary genital cutting of female minors, no matter how severe. We find that within a Western medicolegal framework, these reasons are compelling. However, they do not only apply to female minors, but rather to non-consenting persons of any age irrespective of sex or gender. Keeping our focus exclusively on a Western context for the purposes of this article, we argue as follows: Under most conditions, cutting any person’s genitals without their informed consent is a serious violation of their right to bodily integrity. As such, it is morally impermissible unless the person is non-autonomous (incapable of consent) and the cutting is medically necessary.
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Papers by Godfrey B. Tangwa