New USAID project to boost family planning

THE use of facility- and community-based family health services in Rwanda is set to increase following a new project that was launched recently.Rwanda Family Health Projectis funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), to help promote such services.The five-year project will focus on increasing use of family planning, reproductive health, maternal, neo-natal and child health, HIV/Aids and nutrition services.Among the services they will focus on, include malaria prevention, treatment, tuberculosis treatment, and safe water and hygiene.Doris Youngs, the project’s Chief of Party, said they intend to build local capacity, promote healthy behaviour, strengthen linkages between and within community health facilities, and increase the use of health services.“We want to bring these services closer to the community as we work together with the health ministry to strengthen the use of health services,” she said, adding that the project is aligned to the government’s health priorities.She said they would identify which areas were still lagging and focus on them.Youngs noted that the purpose of the project, whose total cost she could not ascertain, was to build the capacity of Rwandan institutions and to deliver high quality family health services.Uzziel Ndagijimana, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, said the project will help improve use of both the district-level health facilities and community-based family health services.“More people will have access to family planning services, maternal health and HIV/Aids services, among others. It will also help strengthen the management of community based services,” he said.Ndagijimana called on other partners to support the new project, adding that without synchronising their activities, they cannot achieve the desired goals.The project will also improve health facility management systems, including financial, data management, human resources and client flow, he said.

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New USAID project to boost family planning