Health and Finance Ministers participating in the Global Leaders Network for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health (GLN) have called for new and sustainable ways of financing healthcare for women, children and adolescents.
The call was made during a meeting held on the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C., in partnership with the Women’s Health and Economic Empowerment Network (WHEN) and the Partnerships for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health.
In a communiqué shared with the Ghana News Agency, the ministers warned that declining official development assistance, rising debt burdens and increasing pressure on national budgets were threatening progress made in healthcare over the years.
They noted that women, children and adolescents were likely to suffer the most if countries failed to develop stronger and more reliable funding systems.
According to the communiqué, maternal and newborn deaths, poor adolescent health outcomes, limited access to sexual and reproductive healthcare, surgery and women’s cancer treatment remain major concerns across many countries.
The ministers said these services were highly vulnerable to changes in both domestic and international funding flows.
They stressed that the current financial climate required governments and development partners to rethink how health systems are funded and how available resources are used.
The group said sustainable financing would require stronger collaboration between governments, development finance institutions and the private sector to mobilise investments in healthcare.
The communiqué also highlighted the importance of strengthening national health insurance schemes and expanding financial protection systems to reduce out-of-pocket healthcare expenses.
According to the ministers, women, adolescents and people working in the informal sector are among those most affected by catastrophic health spending.
The ministers further pledged to support country-led investment priorities through the GLN Financial Diplomacy Series, which seeks to create blended financing models involving public, private and concessional funding.
They called on development partners, the private sector and the international community to support these efforts and respond urgently to the growing financing needs in the health sector.
