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In 2015, it was estimated that 41% of Africa’s population were children less than 15 years of age. Most of these children are exposed to multiple risk factors which may compromise their developmental outcomes. It is therefore important to develop intervention programs and strategies to address developmental problems faced by African children, if these children are to achieve their promise of propelling Africa to greater heights. Yet the evidence base for developing the required intervention strategy is not strong due to the underrepresentation of data from sub-Saharan Africa in the developmental psychology literature. We set out to fill this gap by putting together a handbook which synthesizes the evidence that can be used as resource by students, practitioners, and policy makers. In this chapter, we have provided a rationale for the book, summarized the theoretical and conceptual issues guiding the book, and lastly summarized the chapters in the book. This information provides the reader with a brief overview of the book.

Infectious diseases contribute significantly to child mortality in Africa; however, mortality rates only represent part of the problem. Among those who survive, cognitive, educational, and behavioral impairments have been reported. In the current chapter, I highlight the neurocognitive deficits, mental health problems, and poor educational outcomes associated with exposure to infectious diseases early in life. Special attention is paid to outcomes of HIV-infected children and children exposed to malaria. The chapter concludes by highlighting two approaches to intervention that have been observed to remediate some of the adverse effects of exposure to infections. Given the prevalence of infectious diseases in the African context, there are huge adverse effects and loss in human potential associated with childhood infectious diseases; identifying points of interventions and implementing evidence-based intervention for children infected with these conditions need to be a priority for applied developmental sciences.