MLI countries present at maternal health technical workshop
November 17, 2011 – November 19, 2011
MLI co-sponsored a technical workshop organized by the Community of Practice on Financial Access to Health Services on the benefits package for maternal health fee exemption policies. Participants at the November 17-19, 2011 workshop in Bamako, Mali included delegations from three MLI countries, Mali, Sierra Leone, and Senegal. Mali and Sierra Leone both presented their country’s experience with fee exemption policies in plenary. Sierra Leone representatives presented Sierra Leone’s experience with the implementation of the free care initiative for pregnant and lactating women and children under five. A representative of the Mali delegation also presented during plenary on Mali’s experience implementing a national policy on free caesarian sections. Both presentations provided opportunities for these countries to share lessons learned and challenges encountered.
The workshop was designed to study and share perspectives of countries’ experiences with eliminating fees for maternal health services, as well as analyze different strategies and processes encountered in the design, implementation and sustainable integration of fee exemption policies into the health system more broadly.