UKaid support to Health Sector in Nepal

Introduction
The UK government is supporting Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) for the implementation of the Nepal Health Sector Programme 3 between April 2017 and December 2022, through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). The aim of this programme is to support the delivery of the Nepal Health Sector Strategy (NHSS), 2015-2022 of the MoHP. The programme builds on the success and learning from the Nepal Health Sector Programme – 2 (2010-2015), and Health Transition and Recovery Programme (July 2016 to March 2017) which supported restoration of health services in the areas affected by the devastating April 2015 earthquake.

This programme aims to support the MoHP’s efforts to provide quality health services ‘leaving no one behind’, and to address the overarching priorities of sub-national governments for health system strengthening. This includes improving access to, governance and quality of, health care services nationwide, especially for women, children, the poor and socially excluded. The programme is also supporting restoration of health services in areas affected by the 2015 earthquake, by providing expertise to the retrofitting and rehabilitation of hospitals in earthquake affected and at-risk areas, in order to improve resilience to future shocks.

UKaid-NHSP 3 is a dynamic programme that has supported the MoHP’s transition towards Federalism, thereby expanding support to sub-national governments. It has also extended technical and financial assistance to the COVID-19 response.

The programme is expected to achieve the following three outcomes:

• 1) Increased use of quality health services, particularly by the poor and disadvantaged
• 2) Strengthened health sector management and governance at federal, provincial and local levels
• 3) Evidence-based planning and decision making at all government levels

The programme aims to contribute to Sustainable Development Goals 2, 3 and 10 (No Hunger, Good Health and Wellbeing and Reduced Inequalities) and to UK government’s global health targets for family planning and nutrition. It also involves the provision of health sector Financial Aid (FA) combined with strong evidenced-based policy dialogue and high-quality Technical Assistance (TA) focused on key health and health governance issues.

Therefore, TA aims to:

• 1) Ensure that UKaid’s FA to the health sector is spent effectively, accountably, transparently, and delivers good value for money;
• 2) Increase the impact of the FA and the health investments of other donors by supporting the MoHP to design and implement better-targeted reforms for improved, more equitable health and nutrition outcomes;
• 3) Support the retrofitting and rehabilitation of major hospitals in earthquake-affected and at-risk areas; and
• 4) Improve health infrastructure policy and regulation so health facilities are more resilient to natural disasters.

There are four separate, but linked, TA components which, following a restricted procurement process, were awarded in March 2017, as follows:

• 1) Embedded TA to the MoHP, Department of Health Services (DoHS), and Department for Urban Development and Building Construction (DUDBC) delivered by Nepal Health Sector Support Programme 3 (NHSSP 3)
• 2) Procurement and Public Financial Management (PPFM) Oversight of the health sector pooled fund;
• 3) Monitoring and Evaluation and Operational Research (MEOR); and
• 4) Social Accountability Approaches in the Health Sector (SAHS)

Nepal Family Planning Project (NFPP): UKaid’s support is also extended to the NFPP. The project is a £15.2 million programme, running from 2013 – 2020, which aims to increase demand for, and provide better access to, family planning services for women who are poor, uneducated, socially excluded and live in remote areas. The programme seeks to expand the range of contraceptive methods available to excluded and vulnerable women and generate evidence to demonstrate impact by shedding light on factors determining non-use of contraception, equity around the uptake of family planning, and market and supply chains. Innovative activities that are currently being scaled up include:

• • Mobilising visiting providers to expand Long Acting and Reversible Contraceptive Methods;
• • Proving comprehensive family planning services through voluntary surgical contraception camps;
• • Integration of family planning services into routine programme on immunization;
• • Integration of family planning services into other health services such as antenatal care, post-delivery care; post abortion care and immunisation in order to increase the likelihood that women have the right information and services when they most need it.

For more detail information about the NFPP, visit https://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-203100