….. to identify country examples that have overcome bureaucratic obstacles to increasing the availability of resources to PHC providers and efficient utilisation of the resources to improve the health of the population
Gombe State has taken centre stage at the first in-person Foundational Reforms for Financing and Delivery of PHC collaborative meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, sharing its experience in implementing the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund (BHCPF) at the sub-national level.


The event, facilitated by Results for Development (R4D) in collaboration with the USAID Health Systems Strengthening Accelerator, provided a three-day learning exchange with members of the Foundational Reforms collaborative on PHC financing and delivery, from the 23rd to the 25th of April, 2024.
The members of the collaborative include key decision makers and PHC providers, working at national and subnational levels from 14 countries: Botswana,Burkina Faso, Colombia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Indonesia, Kenya, Lebanon, Liberia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nigeria, Philippines and Vietnam.

The Executive Secretary of Gombe State Contributory Healthcare Management Agency, Dr Abubakar Musa, who represented Nigeria at the panel discussion shared the state’s experience how it routinely collects information and relevant data in order to track the flow of PHC resources to PHC providers, and the effective use of these resources. He also shared how PHC resources are used and the correct strategies applied to ensure the efficient use of available resources in a low income country setting.
Musa, urged participants to leverage on ICT and shared how it has eased resource tracking and monitoring in Gombe and gave a detailed insight to the Operations of GoHealth robust ICT framework, that has been used for efficient data collection and monitoring.
The Executive Secretary, however, attributed GoHealth’s success stories to the political will and resilience displayed by His Excellency, Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, by ensuring that all the necessary counterpart funds are promptly paid, and healthcare facilities in all political wards in the state were made available and adequately equipped.
Currently, GoHealth has been able to expand it Equity programme beyond the BHCPF, as the state fund enrolled an additional 1,000 persons in the state equity programme, and another 10,000 persons under the UNICEF Nigeria Zero dose programme.
The three-day learning exchange facilitated knowledge sharing and capacity building among members from Botswana, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Indonesia, Kenya, Lebanon, Liberia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nigeria, Philippines, and Vietnam; with an estimated 60 participants.
The Collaborative aims to among other things map how resources flow to PHC and explore if frontline PHC providers receive sufficient resources, and are aligned to population health needs and translated into inputs (health workers, medicines, and other inputs) to support delivery of high quality PHC services; and also identify common learning questions as part of the collaborative’s joint learning.
Experts claim that, the Nairobi workshop is expected to lay the groundwork for future improvements in PHC financing and delivery worldwide.
Dairus Samson
GoHealth