In Washington, D.C.:
Cathy Russell
Phone: +1 202 458 8124
E-mail: crussell@worldbank.org

Ludi Joseph
Phone: +1 202 473 7700
E-mail: ljoseph@ifc.org  
 
In Sana’a:
Samra Shaibani
E-mail: sshaibani@worldbank.org


Sana’a, Yemen, June 10, 2008—The World Bank, acting as administrator for the Global Partnership on Output-Based Aid, today signed a grant agreement for $6.23 million that will help improve maternal care for women in some of the poorest districts of Yemen’s capital, Sana’a. The partners in this deal are two private health care providers in Yemen—the Saudi Yemeni Healthcare Company and the Al Mawarid Company for Educational and Health Services—and a Yemeni nongovernmental organization, SOUL for the Development of Women and Children.  

Under the Queen of Sheba Safe Motherhood Project, up to 40,000 women of reproductive age in Sana’a are expected to receive a mother-baby package of essential health services as defined by the World Health Organization, such as prenatal care, birth attendance by skilled birth attendants, postnatal care, and complicated care services.  

The Global Partnership on Output-Based Aid project will boost Yemen’s efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals of reducing child mortality and improving maternal health by targeting poor women who have limited access to basic health services.

The project is introducing an innovative output-based aid approach, designed to target aid to the poor, link payments to performance, and encourage innovation, efficiency, and public-private partnerships. GPOBA will subsidize 90 percent of the cost of the package of services per woman. All services will be provided by the Saudi Yemeni Healthcare Company and the Al Mawarid Company for Educational and Health Services, mainly through community-based satellite clinics and hospital facilities for complicated care services. GPOBA will reimburse these companies only after they have delivered the services. It will also reimburse a portion of the costs incurred by SOUL, which is responsible for program promotion in the communities.

According to estimates from 2000, Yemen has a ratio of 570 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, with only 27 percent of births attended by skilled birth attendants. The fertility rate is high, with an average of seven children per woman. Poor women often go through pregnancy and deliver at home without seeking any medical care due to such factors as limited access to quality health services, distrust of providers, a lack of female doctors, and the price of care.  

“The GPOBA program will seek to address some of the barriers to safe motherhood by improving health care services and working with poor communities to increase use of these services,” said Patricia Veevers-Carter, Program Manager for GPOBA.

The project will draw on contributions from IFC, a member of the World Bank Group. It will also build on IFC’s existing partnerships with the two companies.

“We are happy to support our partners in developing a scheme that can serve as a model for private businesses in Yemen and show how to make socially responsible investments that contribute to the health of poor communities,” said Guy Ellena, IFC Director for Health and Education.

About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, fosters sustainable economic growth in developing countries by financing private sector investment, mobilizing private capital in local and international financial markets, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. IFC’s vision is that poor people should have the opportunity to escape poverty and improve their lives. In FY07, IFC committed $8.2 billion and mobilized an additional $3.9 billion through syndications and structured finance for 299 investments in 69 developing countries. IFC also provided advisory services in 97 countries. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

About the Global Partnership on Output-Based Aid
GPOBA is a global partnership administered by the World Bank. It was established in 2003, initially as a multidonor trust fund, to develop output-based aid approaches in sectors such as infrastructure, health, and education. The subsidies are designed to create incentives for efficiency and the long-term success of development projects. GPOBA’s current donors are IFC and the governments of Australia, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.gpoba.org.