By Joshua AMLANU
The World Bank is positioning health sector investment as both a social and economic strategy for West and Central Africa, estimating that addressing shortages in healthcare personnel could create more than 2 million jobs across the region as governments shift toward domestically anchored financing models.
Speaking at the World Bank’s ‘Fit to Prosper’ Regional Health, Nutrition and Population Strategy launch in Accra, World Bank officials said the institution aims to help deliver quality and affordable health services to at least 200 million people in West and Central Africa by 2030 – supported by reforms in primary healthcare, financing systems and local pharmaceutical production.
The regional strategy comes as governments across the region face mounting fiscal pressure, rising debt servicing costs and tightening external financing flows even as demographic trends increase demand for healthcare and social infrastructure.
World Bank Group Vice President for People, Mamta Murthi, said the region’s health deficits are increasingly becoming macroeconomic risks – citing high maternal and child mortality, widespread malnutrition and persistent disease burdens as constraints on productivity and labour market outcomes.
“By addressing health worker shortages, the region can create more than 2 million jobs,” the Vice President said, adding that investments in health generate economic returns well beyond the sector itself.
The Bank said West and Central Africa currently account for 33 percent of global child deaths, 44 percent of maternal deaths and nearly 60 percent of malaria-related deaths, while one-third of children under five suffer stunting. It estimates that adults who received nutritional support during childhood can earn up to 46% more over their lifetimes.
The strategy is structured around three priorities: strengthening frontline primary healthcare systems, improving the scale and efficiency of health financing and building resilience against outbreaks and climate-related shocks. Officials said the region faces roughly 100 disease outbreaks annually.
The Bank’s regional health portfolio currently spans 24 active operations across more than 20 countries, with commitments of about US$4.4billion and an additional US$340million in co-financing.
Ghana is expected to become one of the first countries to operationalise the new financing approach through a government-led Universal Health Coverage Compact being developed jointly with the World Bank.
Chief of Staff Julius Debrah said the compact will align domestic resources, concessional financing and donor support under a single national framework coordinated by the Ministries of Finance and Health.
“This Compact represents a new way of working,” Mr. Debrah said. “It positions countries as co-authors of their future,” he added, describing the initiative as part of President John Dramani Mahama’s broader ‘Accra Reset’ agenda focused on national ownership and sustainability.
Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh said government’s reforms are intended to improve financing efficiency and reduce household healthcare costs through measures including uncapping the National Health Insurance Levy, implementation of a Free Primary Healthcare initiative and establishing Ghana Medical Trust Fund… known as MahamaCares.
“Development support achieves its greatest impact when it is aligned with national priorities, coordinated around country systems and measured by the difference it makes in the lives of people,” Mr. Akandoh said.
World Bank Division Director Robert Taliercio said Ghana’s progress in health financing and childhood nutrition positions it among a limited number of countries in the region with the potential to realise a demographic dividend.
Still, implementation risks remain significant. Health spending across West and Central Africa averages about 1.5 percent of GDP, below peer regions, while weak budget execution, infrastructure deficits and shortages of skilled personnel continue to constrain outcomes.
The Bank said stronger domestic resource mobilisation and coordinated financing frameworks will be critical as external funding conditions tighten and demand for healthcare services accelerates ahead of the region’s projected population expansion through 2050.
Post Views: 37
Discover more from The Business & Financial Times
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
