A Health Sector Support Investment Project for Cameroon

The World Bank Board of Executive Directors today approved a US$25 million equivalent operation to finance a Health Sector Support Investment project for Cameroon. The financing package which is an International Development Association (IDA) credit is designed to be financed through a US$25 million sector investment loan (SIL), to be implemented over a 5-year period (2009-2013), in support of the government’s Health Sector Development Program which is under preparation.

The operation will provide flexible financing in support of the Ministry of Health’s program which promotes a Sector Wide Approach. IDA financing will be coordinated with financial support from the French Development Agency, the German development assistance, and will complement contributions from other development partners, including the ADB, UNICEF, and the WHO.

The project will assist Cameroon to achieve better health and nutrition outcomes towards accelerated and sustained economic growth and poverty reduction. The goal is to work with other partners to get Cameroon back on track towards reaching the health and nutrition Millennium Development Goals. The Ministry of Health has led an important process of revamping the Health Sector Strategy which sets the strategic framework for the Bank support. The bottom up process of district planning led by the Ministry of Health has been instrumental in identifying needs and ensuring ownership.

The project will support the implementation of the updated Health Sector Strategy in order to accelerate progress toward the Millennium Development Goals. The project development objective is to increase utilization and improve the quality of health services with a particular focus on child and maternal health and communicable diseases.

The proposed project has two components. The first component will provide support to Annual District Action Plans through the financing of performance-based contracts with District Health Authorities, NGOs, and Health Facilities and procurement of goods, including drugs and medical equipment. The second component will strengthen the Ministry of Health at the national, provincial and district levels to put in place performance contracting, and a unified information system to generate up to date, reliable, financial and programmatic data to measure performance, through the provision of technical assistance, training, goods and equipment.

The project will contribute to three of the main Poverty Reduction Strategy pillars: (i) strengthening human resources and bolstering social services; (ii) using the private sector as a partner in social services delivery; and (iii) improving governance.

The proposed operation will assist the Ministry of Health to refine its Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and ensure that priority is given to high-impact services, underserved areas, and vulnerable groups, and that the health sector program is in line with the macroeconomic framework and global budget.

As Miriam Schneidman, the Task Team Leader of this project said,“Health outcomes are out of synch with the country’s potential and lag behind other countries in the region, making Cameroon seriously off track for reaching the health and nutrition MDGs. Under the leadership of the Ministry of Health, and working in partnership with others the Bank hopes to make a difference in the lives of Cameroonians by enhancing access to quality health services”.// World Bank Pressroom