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With stalled progress and crises jeopardizing the health, rights and opportunities of women – the governments of Côte d’Ivoire, Germany and the Netherlands, together with the World Bank, have launched a fundraising campaign in support of the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF).
The ‘Deliver the Future’ campaign aims to raise at least $800m USD for the GFF in 2023, a country-led partnership housed within the World Bank. This funding will mobilize $20.5bn USD by 2025 to secure healthier futures for the world’s most vulnerable women, children and adolescents. The financing will enable low- and lower-middle-income countries to invest in primary health systems that deliver for women, children and adolescents.
Amid global economic and countries’ fiscal strain, demand for GFF support is increasing given its unique partnership to maximize concessional financing. The GFF was founded at the start of the SDG era as a new, country-led model of financing to accelerate health care investments and enable women, children, and adolescents to survive and thrive. In the last eight years, countries have made significant gains. More than 500 million women and adolescent girls have had access to modern family planning, 103 million women have delivered their babies safely, and 96 million women have received four or more antenatal care visits.
Currently more than 4.5 million women and babies die every year during pregnancy, childbirth or the first weeks after birth from mostly preventable conditions. With more than 60 countries (including 35 of the 36 GFF partner countries) off track to meeting the SDG health targets for maternal, newborn, and stillborn mortality reduction, the campaign underscores the clear and urgent need to improve coverage of critical health services and invest in stronger health systems that provide for the needs of women, children, and adolescents. It is one of the smartest investments a country — and the global community — can make for future health and prosperity.
Under these plans, more than 250 million women, children and adolescents would have access to essential health services including, four or more antenatal care visits, postnatal care, immunization and modern contraceptives – resulting in the avoidance of unintended pregnancies.
With an additional investment of at least US$800 million in 2023, the GFF can mobilize up to $20.5 billion USD - $8bn of World Bank (IDA/IBRD) financing ($2billion of which is brand new financing specifically for women, children and adolescent health); $5 billion in aligned financing from global development partners; and $7.5 billion in domestic resources from partner governments.
Improving the health and rights of women and children will not only save and improve individual lives. Realizing sexual and reproductive health and rights is key for enhancing gender equality. It facilitates social, economic and political participation and helps build more prosperous communities, societies and countries. Put simply – countries’ economic success depends on greater equality for women and children – including access to health.
H. E. Patrick Achi, Prime Minister, Côte d’Ivoire: “Strong and equitable health systems are essential building blocks for sustainable development and economic growth. This is why Côte d’Ivoire is co-hosting the GFF’s Deliver the Future campaign. The GFF approach works — and in Côte D’Ivoire it has helped deliver better health. Now, greater funding is needed to ensure that more countries can unlock opportunities for millions of women, children and adolescents to deliver a better future for all. There is no better investment.”
Svenja Schulze, Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, Germany: “This year Germany launched its feminist development policy. Its aim is to strengthen the rights, representation, and resources of women. The Global Financing Facility is exactly doing that by transforming investment in women, children, and adolescent health. This is why together with the governments of Côte d’Ivoire, the Netherlands and the World Bank, Germany co-hosts the GFF’s Deliver the Future campaign to raise the political attention and investment needed to save lives and ensure rights and opportunities for women and children.”
Liesje Schreinemacher, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, the Netherlands: “We are co-hosting the GFF’s Deliver the Future campaign together with Germany, Côte d’Ivoire and the World Bank because we know that prioritizing the needs and rights of women worldwide starts with health. Investing in women and their sexual and reproductive health and rights is one of the most impactful actions a country can make. It mitigates the impact of future shocks, unleashes the potential of women and girls, and puts countries on a path towards development and prosperity. As part of this effort, we are proud to triple our contribution to the GFF with a total of 90 million euros until 2025 and call on other donors to increase their investment and join the GFF.”
Mamta Murthi, Vice President of Human Development, World Bank: “By investing in the GFF, development partners are catalyzing billions of dollars of funding for the health of women, children and adolescents, to improve health and well-being, and empower women to be agents of change in their communities. Through its mission to support countries to Deliver the Future, the GFF supports long-lasting change by helping build more resilient and equitable health systems.”
A pledging event for the “Deliver the Future" campaign will be held at the World Health Summit in Berlin on October 16, 2023.
This article was originally published on globalfinancingfacility.org.