Blog

Essays on health financing, global health, political economy and supply chains.

Two blocks of dots for 2000 and 2025: Uganda's population doubled while the number of people with malaria stayed about the same.

Uganda Nearly Halved Its Malaria Rate. So Why Are Just as Many of Us Getting Sick?
3 min
Global Health
Health Financing
Data Visualization

An interactive data story: 26 years of malaria data for every district in Uganda, and who is paying to keep the gains.

Sep 29, 2026

Icicle chart of 8.3 million deaths in the WHO African Region in 2021, split into communicable, non-communicable and injury causes.

Africa’s Causes of Death, 2021
2 min
Global Health
Data Visualization

An explorable data story on the causes of death in Africa, from the WHO Global Health Estimates 2021.

Jul 18, 2026

Scatter chart of African countries: observed rate of reduction in maternal mortality against the rate needed to reach 70 by 2030. Almost every country sits in the off-track zone.

Will Africa Hit the SDG Maternal Mortality Target by 2030?
4 min
Maternal & Child Health
Global Health
Data Visualization

Of Africa’s 54 countries, 10 are on pace to meet SDG 3.1 by 2030. An interactive look at the road from 2023 to 2030.

May 27, 2026

Bar chart of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in African countries in 2023, with Nigeria highest at 993 and the SDG target of 70 marked.

Only 4 of 47 African Countries Meet the SDG Maternal Mortality Target
2 min
Maternal & Child Health
Global Health
Data Visualization

In 2023, a woman giving birth in Nigeria was 25 times more likely to die than one giving birth in Cabo Verde. An interactive chart of maternal mortality across Africa.

May 14, 2026

Bar chart of reported measles cases across 46 African countries, 1980 to 2023, falling from 1.4 million in 1981 to 35,371 in 2016.

Measles in Africa: From 1.4 Million Cases to 35,000
2 min
Vaccines & Immunisation
Global Health
Data Visualization

In 1981, measles infected 1.4 million people across Africa in a single year. By 2016, it was 35,000. An interactive heatmap of 44 years and 46 countries.

Mar 14, 2026

Chart comparing tax revenue with government health spending

Tax Revenue as the key to Sustainable Health Financing
9 min
Tax & Domestic Resource Mobilisation
Health Financing

Of all the drivers of health spending — aid, debt, corruption, elections — the one that matters most is tax revenue. Uganda’s anemic tap.

Feb 16, 2026

Illustration of the public health cost of election-related unrest

The Public Health Cost of General Elections
7 min
Global Health
Political Economy

Elections aren’t just political events; they quietly decide who lives long enough to see their leaders govern. The public-health cost of unrest.

Dec 9, 2025

Illustration of compounding advantage, where r is greater than g

The Matthew Effect
5 min
Political Economy
Global Health

How R > g — the Matthew Effect — compounds advantage for a few and erases it for the most vulnerable, and why that makes the social sector essential.

Nov 5, 2025

Illustration of the politician's dilemma as a game-theory payoff matrix

Why do honest people become corrupt politicians?
6 min
Political Economy

A game-theory look at why the political system rewards corruption and punishes honesty — and what it would take to change the rules.

Oct 7, 2025

Government health spending before and after donor funding arrives

When 1 + 1 is NOT equal to 2.
6 min
Health Financing
Global Health

This post explores the displacement effect and how it shapes government investment decision making

Aug 11, 2025

A Ugandan hospital bill, illustrating the cost of staying alive

The Cost of Staying Alive in Uganda
5 min
Health Financing

A personal story about what a USD 130 hospital bill reveals about Uganda’s health financing.

May 6, 2025

Ugandan trade convoy crossing the South Sudan border under military guard

Trade Under Guard
2 min
Supply Chain Management

A short story about securing the national interest.

Apr 13, 2025
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