The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Republic of Sudan on 28th April 2015 signed an agreement for
a grant of $ 40 million for Building Capacity for inclusive Service Delivery Project. The grant is financed from the Performance Based Allocation for Sudan under ADF-13. The objective of the project is to build institutional and human resources capacity to expand sustainable and inclusive coverage of and access to safety nets and health services, especially for women.
The signing ceremony was held at the Ministry of Finance and National Economy (MoFNE) and was presided over by the Hon. Minister of Finance and National Economy, Badr Eldien Mahmoud Abbas who signed on behalf of the Government of Sudan (GoS). The ceremony was also attended by Minister of Health, Undersecretary of Planning and technical experts from the MoFNE who witnessed the ceremony.
In his opening remarks, the Minister of the MoFNE, Mr. Badr Eldien Mahmoud Abbas, welcomed the grant as timely, and praised the African Development Bank for this strategic support to his country’s capacity building initiatives in the health sector. The Minister reiterated that the grant will help improve service delivery in health sector through the social safety net program.
For his part, the AfDB OIC Mr. Suwareh Darbo noted that the project will help improve and expand access to safety nets and basic health services, especially for the poor and vulnerable segments of the population. It will also help strengthen the Ministry of Welfare and Social Security and its implementing institutions, particularly the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) to expand access to affordable and quality safety nets programs targeting the urban poor and the rural populations. The NHIF currently covers only 36% of the population largely urban and working segments of the society.
