Paper short abstract:

This paper discusses the experience of an anthropologist doing fieldwork about primary health care in Guinea-Bissau. It questions the role of an anthropologist in the process of health policy making and argues that a positive aspect is that it can help include the voice of beneficiaries.

Paper long abstract:

In recent years there has been increased interest in revitalizing the Alma Ata Declaration in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. The declaration, launched at a Who/Unicef conference on primary health care in 1978, was influential in rural communities in low-income countries all around the world. Its aim was Health for All by the Year 2000. Access to health care was considered a human right, and it should engage with maternal and child health, family planning, water and sanitation, essential drugs, food and nutrition, immunization, simple treatment, health education and control of endemic diseases. Community participation was considered crucial for successful implementation.

This paper is based on experience from 18 months of anthropological fieldwork in Guinea-Bissau between 2009 and 2011. The aim of the study was to explore the implementation of Alma Ata in rural Guinea-Bissau and the impact of various policies. Semi structured interviews were taken with representatives of international organizations and NGOs, responsible people at the Ministry of Health, health staff and villagers. Two meetings were attended at the Ministry of Health with international organizations and NGOs to discuss the future of community health care and draft a new policy.

This paper analyzes the role of an anthropologist in public health and how data gathered for a PhD thesis can influence the revitalization process and national health policies. It is argued that anthropological methodology and knowledge gained from fieldwork can be important in order to include the voice of villagers who would otherwise not have been heard.