In Summary
•The approach, referred to as results-based financing for health, (RBF), pays providers of health services after pre-agreed results have been achieved and independently verified.
•Created in 2007, the Health Results Innovation Trust Fund, managed by the World Bank, is supporting 36 RBF programmes in 31 countries, committing $404 million of donor funding from the governments of Norway and the United Kingdom.
•Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Nigeria, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, and Zambia are all examples where RBF approaches have improved quality healthcare services.
African Governments and donors are changing the way they finance maternal and child health care, malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/Aids programmes in low-income countries.
The approach, referred to as results-based financing for health, (RBF), pays providers of health services after pre-agreed results have been achieved and independently verified.
RBF is a change from paying for inputs to paying for services delivered to increase impact.
It assures donors that their funds are being used as intended and producing the desired results. This includes how countries disburse their own resources.
Early research shows that countries that use RBF can get 20 per cent more healthcare for the same amount of money with a higher quality of care.
“Evidence shows that results-based financing has a significant impact – saving lives and expanding access to quality, essential health services for the poorest women and children in developing countries,” said Jim Yong Kim, president of the World Bank Group.
Created in 2007, the Health Results Innovation Trust Fund, managed by the World Bank, is supporting 36 RBF programmes in 31 countries, committing $404 million of donor funding from the governments of Norway and the United Kingdom.
Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Nigeria, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, and Zambia are all examples where RBF approaches have improved quality healthcare services.
In Rwanda, the government decided to implement a national RBF scheme, paying incentives for the delivery of quality maternal and child health services.
The rigorous evaluation showed that the programme improved both the coverage as well as the quality of health services. The results also showed that an equal amount of financial resources without the incentives didn’t achieve the same gain in outcomes.