W/Bank Canvass Puiblic/Private Partnership on Healthcare
- By Abimbola Tooki
- Published June 13th, 2011
- News
- Unrated
The World Bank has called on African government to partner private sector to expand health services across countries in the continent.
A new report by IFC/World Bank said if governments actively engage with the private sector in health, the pace of meeting health goals in Sub-Saharan Africa could be accelerated. By leveraging the “power of two,” health services can be expanded and the financial burden on governments eased, the bank said. The report entitled ‘Healthy Partnerships: How Governments Can Engage the Private Sector to Improve Health in Africa’ relies on in-depth data collection in 45 countries on the African continent to describe the current engagement as well as lack thereof, between the public and private health sectors.
It is the first report to look systematically at the relationship between the public and private health sectors in Africa, thus, providing information aimed at both parties on what improvements can be made and how.
The report found that many policies exist on paper, but are not implemented in practice. Thirty-nine out of the 45 countries researched have a policy towards the private health sector, but only 12 are implementing them. Meanwhile, all 45 countries require private facilities to be inspected, but in only five countries are the inspections carried out as required.
“The only way we will be able to tackle the tremendous health care challenges on this continent is by working effectively with the private sector as equal partners, towards a common goal,” Raila Odinga, prime minister Republic of Kenya, said. “The private sector can provide not only additional resources for investment, but also the required management capacity and critical innovation in the delivery of health services and goods.”
Jean-Philippe Prosper, IFC director for East and Southern Africa, said “given the lack of resources in Africa, it is crucial we leverage the power of two, public and private, to bring effective solutions to the continent’s enormous health challenges.” IFC and the World Bank group, he said, are ready to work with African countries to catalyze effective public private engagement and support required policy and regulatory reforms that can substantially improve access to quality health services for all Africans.
A new report by IFC/World Bank said if governments actively engage with the private sector in health, the pace of meeting health goals in Sub-Saharan Africa could be accelerated. By leveraging the “power of two,” health services can be expanded and the financial burden on governments eased, the bank said. The report entitled ‘Healthy Partnerships: How Governments Can Engage the Private Sector to Improve Health in Africa’ relies on in-depth data collection in 45 countries on the African continent to describe the current engagement as well as lack thereof, between the public and private health sectors.
It is the first report to look systematically at the relationship between the public and private health sectors in Africa, thus, providing information aimed at both parties on what improvements can be made and how.
The report found that many policies exist on paper, but are not implemented in practice. Thirty-nine out of the 45 countries researched have a policy towards the private health sector, but only 12 are implementing them. Meanwhile, all 45 countries require private facilities to be inspected, but in only five countries are the inspections carried out as required.
“The only way we will be able to tackle the tremendous health care challenges on this continent is by working effectively with the private sector as equal partners, towards a common goal,” Raila Odinga, prime minister Republic of Kenya, said. “The private sector can provide not only additional resources for investment, but also the required management capacity and critical innovation in the delivery of health services and goods.”
Jean-Philippe Prosper, IFC director for East and Southern Africa, said “given the lack of resources in Africa, it is crucial we leverage the power of two, public and private, to bring effective solutions to the continent’s enormous health challenges.” IFC and the World Bank group, he said, are ready to work with African countries to catalyze effective public private engagement and support required policy and regulatory reforms that can substantially improve access to quality health services for all Africans.
