Guinea to Improve the Health of Women, Children, and Adolescents with World Bank Group Support

Conakry, September 25, 2024 - The World Bank Group has approved a total of $95 million in financing from the International Development Association (IDA)* and the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF)** for the Guinea Enhancing Health System Transformation (GUEST) Project.

The project will support Guinea's national health plan to improve the quality and use of health services, focusing on reproductive, maternal, neonatal, child, and adolescent health and nutrition. The project will incorporate interventions aimed at strengthening the operational capacity of health facilities in terms of human, material, energy, water, and drug resources, as well as measures to adapt to and mitigate climate change in order to improve the performance of the Guinean health system. It will also support the Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene in its efforts to improve the quality of care, provide free health care for the extremely poor, and increase the participation and commitment of communities in improving their state of health. Finally, it will support the modernization of the national civil status and identification system to guarantee access to health services for all populations in general, and for the most vulnerable in particular.

"We are committed to supporting Guinea in its efforts to transform its health system and improve health outcomes for its population," said Issa Diaw, World Bank Group Country Manager for Guinea. "This project will not only improve the quality and accessibility of health services, but also ensure that the health system is resilient in the face of climate change and other emergencies."

Building on successes and lessons learned from past successes, the project will expand to cover additional regions in Guinea. Women and children in the most vulnerable and climate-sensitive regions who rely on primary health services at the community level will benefit from the project.

"The GFF is proud to support Guinea in its efforts to build a more resilient health system so that all women, children and adolescents can access the care they need," said Luc Laviolette, Head of GFF Secretariat. "Building on previous support and progress made, this second GFF grant to Guinea will help keep a focus on reducing inequities through quality and affordable care and access to sexual and reproductive health services, as well as ensuring respectful gender sensitive care."

The Project is aligned with the adaptation and resilience objectives of the Paris Agreement and Guinea's Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) and the latest Country Partnership Framework (CPF 2018-2023) and related performance and learning review.

"This project fits in perfectly with our health policy and strategic health development plan. By placing maternal and child health at the center of the Ministry's priorities, it is closely aligned with the vision of the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister, Head of Government. We are convinced that rigorous implementation of this project will contribute to a substantial improvement in key health indicators, by guaranteeing equitable access to primary healthcare and improving the quality of the services offered," said Dr. Oumar Diouhé BAH, Minister of Health and Public Hygiene.

* The International Development Association (IDA) is the World Bank institution that helps the world's poorest countries. Founded in 1960, it provides grants and low-interest or interest-free loans for projects and programs that stimulate economic growth, reduce poverty and improve the lives of the poorest people. IDA is one of the main donors to the 76 poorest countries in the world, 39 of which are in Africa. IDA's resources are making a positive difference to the lives of 1.6 billion people in the countries eligible for its aid. Since its creation, IDA has supported activities in 113 countries. The annual volume of commitments is growing steadily and has averaged $21 billion over the last three years, with around 61% of this amount going to Africa.

**The GFF is a country-led partnership, hosted by the World Bank, that fights poverty and inequity by advancing the health, rights and opportunities of women, children and adolescents. It does this by supporting low- and lower-middle-income countries to strengthen their health systems and improve the quality of and access to health care through prioritized plans, aligned financing, and policy reform. Since partnering with the GFF, countries have reached: 100 million pregnant women with four or more antenatal care visits; 130 million women with safe delivery care; 135 million newborns with early initiation of breastfeeding; 630 million women and adolescents with modern contraceptives, preventing 230 million unintended pregnancies.