The United States has pledged 40 million dollars for the Ethiopian health sector under a new five-year Health Financing Improvement Program.

The United States development agency, USAID, has channeled the finance to Abt Associates, a firm that researches, evaluates and implements programs in the fields of health, social and environmental policy and international development.

To execute the project, Abt has partnered with Breakthrough International Consultancy, Dimagi, Institute for Healthcare Improvement and Results for Development. Abt, which has been carrying out four programs for USAID, was awarded the contract on October 25, 2018.

The financing aims at expanding Ethiopia’s capacity to provide quality and affordable healthcare, according to Leslie Reed, mission director of USAID Ethiopia.

"With the right political will and commitment," said Reed, "it is possible to lay the foundation for a self-reliant healthcare system, capable of providing high-quality health services."

The new program aims to increase the proportion of the population enrolled in health insurance schemes from 13pc to 50pc. It also aims at reducing the ratio of out of pocket expenditures to total health expenditure from 33pc to 25pc in the coming five years.

The government endorsed its first health care financing strategy in 1998, which also has served as a policy roadmap for implementation of subsequent, wide-ranging reforms over the last two decades.

USAID’s community-based health insurance initiative currently provides medical coverage to nearly 20 million Ethiopians nationwide.

Community-Based Health Insurance and retaining and using of internally-generated revenues on facility and service improvement schemes have become vital in the pastoral and agrarian regions, according to Eshete Yilma, a former USAID team member and veteran in the health finance sector.

“These schemes have enabled the rural community to get access to health facilities for an affordable price,” he said.