Body Donation Laws and African Societies. Are Anatomists Equipped to Bridge the Gap?

Current IFAA practice recommendations stipulate that body donation programs be regulated through national or state legislative laws. Among African countries with such legislative frameworks, apart from South Africa, voluntary body donation programs are typically unsuccessful, as evidenced by the heavy reliance on unclaimed bodies for anatomy education. Cultural/religious beliefs are typically cited as a key factor impacting on success without examining deeper relationships between body donation laws and societal norms and values. This omission is significant given that colonial legacies have inevitably underpinned these laws. This qualitative case study explored the alignment between body donation legislation and societal norms and values in four African countries: Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, and Zimbabwe.