Uganda: $50M for Health System Growth

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Uganda is seeking applications to fund one or more organizations through a Cooperative Agreement for a five-year health service integration program in Uganda. Subject to the availability of funds, USAID intends to provide approximately $50 million in total USAID funding to be allocated over the five-year period. The purpose of the NU-HITES is to continue technical assistance and capacity building support similar to that provided under the Northern Uganda Malaria, AIDS and Tuberculosis (NUMAT) project, integrate additional support in Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health (MNCH), Family Planning (FP) and nutrition; while prioritizing the strengthening of district-level health systems.NU-HITES is envisioned to serve as USAID’s key partner in the coming five years to support improvements for a health system able to meet the health needs of the northern Uganda population. As the north continues its transition from post-conflict to a more stable development setting, USAID is also transitioning its modes of support from humanitarian approaches that provide basic service provision to one of longer-term partnership with local structures and systems to ensure greater sustainability of social sector services.

In this vein, the program will focus on supporting District governments to enable them to meet their primary responsibility for the provision of public sector health services. However, while public sector services and leadership are necessary, they are not sufficient to meet the population’s health needs. Therefore, NU-HITES will also support the growth and acceleration of a vibrant and sustainable private health sector that aims to serve the health needs of the northern Uganda population through innovations in service provision while complementing the public sector. Underpinning this support of both the public and private sector to strengthen health services in the north will be a shift from the current NUMAT program’s focus on infectious disease to an integrated focus on ensuring that quality primary health services are available, accessible, and affordable at different levels of the health system.

Specifically, NU-HITES goal is the improved and sustained health and nutritional status of northern Uganda population through strengthening a district-based integrated package of quality health services. The expected program objectives are as follows: 1) Increased use of quality health services at facility and community level by women, girls and children (Health Service Delivery); and 2) Strengthened systems for effective and sustainable delivery of quality health services (Health System Strengthening).