Epilepsy Africa News – Issue 9

I warmly welcome you to our 9th issue of Epilepsy Africa newsletter. And I have exciting news for all our young people with epilepsy: the IBE is funding projects this year again. Thank you IBE for this kind of support that will allow the region to promote projects by its future leaders. My own vision is for these projects to focus on advocacy through showcasing capabilities (e.g. income project), doing awareness or direct lobbying. Inside this newsletter, you will suggestions on how you can achieve this. You will also find a report of a previous project in Cameroon. By sharing the report, we hope that you will pick important lessons for you to improve your project.

Further about advocacy, you will find information about a meeting that I attended in Geneva in May 2018. The meeting was about reducing the challenges people with epilepsy face globally. I am also happy to inform you that while in Geneva, I had a meeting with Mary Secco (IBE Secretary General) and Gardiner Lapham from BAND Foundation, a USA based foundation that has agreed to fund our advocacy project. BAND will fund us through the IBE and I want to encourage you to apply to run this advocacy project in your country when calls for applications open. I had several other meetings and conversations. I would want to welcome Grace Moyo (youths representative in our committee) and Kenneth Nsom (representing West Africa). I want to thank all those who have been communicating with us through emails, Facebook, twitter and calls. I will be happy to hear from all our associations.

Lastly, please see the WHO resolution poster at the end. As you know, this is the current global policy on epilepsy and we have to push for its implementation in our countries and the African region. Let’s us hear how we can work with you to achieve the objectives of the resolution.