New Delhi, Jun 24 (IANS): The Indian government, the Mizoram government, and the World Bank have signed a $32 million Mizoram Health Systems Strengthening Project to improve management capacity and quality of health services in the northeastern state, particularly for the benefit of under-served areas and vulnerable groups.

The project will strengthen the governance and the management structure of the Department of Health and Family Welfare and its subsidiaries, improve the quality and coverage of services delivered by the state government health systems, and invest in a comprehensive Quality Assurance programme which would enable quality certification of health facilities.

A key focus will be to strengthen the effectiveness of the state health insurance programme; build synergies with the Centre's Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna (PMJAY); and thereby reduce financial barriers in accessing hospital services, prevent catastrophic out of pocket expenditure for health by poor families and expand coverage.

The Mizoram Health Systems Strengthening Project will benefit the people across all eight districts of the state. It will also benefit health sector staff, specifically at the secondary and primary levels, by strengthening their planning and management capacity along with building their clinical skills and competencies.

As a key strategy, the project will move towards a performance-based financing system where Internal Performance Agreements (IPAs) between the Health Department and its subsidiaries would foster more accountability at all levels. The project will also focus on promoting synergy between various schemes and augment the capacity of the state insurance agency.

The Covid-19 pandemic has had adverse effects on the delivery and utilisation of essential health services in the state. The project will invest in infection prevention and control for a more resilient response to future outbreaks, pandemics, and health emergencies.