“Domestic resource mobilization” is a hot topic in development. Stakeholders agree that domestic resource mobilization is the path to sustainable development finance. But what is domestic resource mobilization? What does it mean for the health sector?

India has one of the world’s highest rates of out-of-pocket (OOP) spending on health. OOP spending in India accounts for 67.1 percent of total health spending, whereas the global average is 29 percent. The high OOP spending on health puts a financial burden on poor and vulnerable families by presenting a barrier to utilization (first-time […]

With a mission ‘to increase communication among health economists and foster a higher standard of debate in the application of economics to health and health care systems’, the Health Governance and Finance project (HFG) was well-represented at the recent 2017 iHEA World Congress.

In May, the HFG project supported the second “International Course on Decentralization in the Health Sector”, held in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The five-day course was a follow up to the first decentralization course in May 2016. The course was so successful that participants asked that the HFG project consider organizing more courses on […]

The Health Sector Financing Reform (HSFR)/HFG project in Ethiopia has supported the Ethiopian government to design and implement a national community-based health insurance scheme program scale-up strategy

It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to our friend and colleague, Cheikh Mbengue. He was an integral part of the Abt Associates family from 2002 – 2014, beloved by all who knew him for his lively character and genuine dedication to his work. He single-handedly achieved so much in the area of […]

Burundi’s National HIV/AIDS Program (PNLS) was created in 2011 to lead the long-term implementation of the Burundian Ministry of Health’s HIV and AIDS programs. Soon after its inception, it was clear that the National HIV/AIDS Program (Programme de Lutte Contra la SIDA or PNLS) lacked strong management and organizational capacity, resulting in weaker HIV and AIDS […]

Effective communications and stakeholder engagement are critical to universal health coverage (UHC) reform efforts – a challenge that has been repeatedly cited by the policymakers and practitioners from the Joint Learning Network’s member countries. Even when strong technical designs for policy initiatives exist, consistent and systematic inclusive communications and feedback loops are needed to share change […]

The Essential Health Services Package (EHSP) explicitly prioritizes certain services; government-sponsored health benefit plans implicitly prioritize others. To gain insights into the purpose, policy objectives, and governance of the EPHS and dominant health benefit plans in Ethiopia, we conducted a case study in 2016.

Recognizing the powerful potential of CSOs, and the capacity gaps that inhibit this potential, the HFG project has partnered with the White Ribbon Alliance of India (WRAI), a prominent countrywide network of grassroots CSOs engaged in FP advocacy. The project has helped develop a structured plan to provide capacity building support to CSOs, focusing on […]