Health

Illness and poverty are strongly correlated all over the world. A lack of economic opportunity, unhealthy living conditions, almost no access to clean drinking water and sanitary facilities, insufficient education, poor nutrition and hunger have a devastating effect on people’s health. The infant, child and mother mortality rates in developing countries are considerably higher than in industrialised nations. 500,000 women die each year in pregnancy, during birth or right after giving birth because they do not have access to sufficient medical care. Children, especially small children, are also significantly affected: respiratory diseases, diarrhoea, worms or malaria take millions of lives each year.

A lack of human resources is in part responsible. In Germany for example more than 350 doctors are taking care of the health of 100,000 people. In Mozambique there are only three. The lack of power for many segments of the population, the repression of minorities and a lack of equality between the sexes all serve to further acerbate the problem. Financing problems are also a clear cause of poor health care in many developing and transition countries. In developing countries in particular, budgets are often insufficient to ensure sufficient health care coverage, especially for those segments of the population stricken by poverty. In many countries patients have to pay large treatment fees, and illness brings with it the spectre of poverty. The development of social security systems is therefore a logical integral component of strategies to combat poverty.

The present worldwide health situation is not just a humanitarian tragedy. Illness is also a tremendous burden to the national economies of the countries affected. The World Health Organisation (WHO) Commission on Macroeconomics and Health published a report clearly showing that investment in the health management systems of developing and transition countries results in enormous economic advantages and as such is indispensable to the sustainable development of these countries. This is why health is a main focal point of German development cooperation.

Inwent supports its partner countries in this area through targeted capacity building. Our dialogue events provide information and advice about the basic principles of different health care financing systems. Seminars and training courses for policy makers and management personnel from public or private insurance carriers provide expert know-how and key skills that are essential for the development and institutional safeguarding of sustainable financing systems. Our “International Approaches to Health Financing and Health Insurance” course is just one example. Participants learn the basic principles of health care system financing, analyse case studies from different countries and develop sustainable strategies for health care in their countries that take local conditions into account.

Additionally Inwent works on further developing expert and management skills in the health sectors of its partner countries. To this end we offer training programmes for experts and executives active in the health sector on individual aspects of health management. Our training programmes strengthen the entire health care system. On an institutional level we support training facilities in health care with programmes on curriculum design and on introducing modern teaching methods and materials such as e-learning in particular.