Malawi

Our Evidence for Action (E4A) programme played a critical role in compiling evidence from the report and coordinating and disseminating the findings through the MamaYe campaign.

Making the most effective use of limited resources is a priority for all health systems.

This week we will be hosting a ‘knowledge café’ in Malawi on ‘Governance and Accountability for Health’, discussing practical approaches to strengthening the performance of the health sector in Malawi.

Our recent event in Lilongwe identified the need to strengthen accountability at all levels to help meet the challenges facing quality health service delivery in Malawi.

Exciting discussions have recently been taking in place in Malawi regarding the scale up of results-based financing (RBF) initiatives within the health system.

We’re working in Malawi to support the Results-based Financing for Maternal and Newborn Health Initiative. Programme results have influenced the Ministry of Health to consider incorporating PBF, including RBF and other similar approaches, into its policy and strategy frameworks of the health sector.

We’re working at all levels of the health system in Malawi to strengthen accountability and health efficiency, with a strong focus on preventing drug theft.

'Be bold for change' means to be a principled, open-minded, conscientious risk taker; someone who is not afraid to act, to challenge, to make difficult decisions; to speak out in order to make progress/achieve/make a difference.

Catholic Sisters in Malawi have used money raised through our results-based financing programme to build a new maternity waiting shelter to “uphold the dignity of expectant mothers”.

Over the last five years, the UKAid-funded Malawi Health Sector Programme – Technical Assistance (MHSP-TA) has helped to ensure Malawi’s healthcare services are accessible, accountable and efficient.

When it emerged that drugs were going missing from health facilities in Malawi, there was strong public will for accountability in the health sector. Groups like the Health Centre Advisory Committees have increased scrutiny and reduced the number of drugs failing to reach patients.

Small grants given to community-based health groups in Malawi have led to significant improvements in local health facilities and a strong social return on investment in just six months.

Corruption still limits access to quality health care across the world. Options is supporting a three-year research project, led by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, to gain insights into factors that drive and can fight corruption in district health systems in Nigeria and Malawi.

After decades of record investments in global health in lower income countries, donors have started to look for exit strategies. These three lessons can support governments to become self-sufficient in financing their health goals.