Management Sciences for Health to Improve Access and Quality of Health Services for Women and Children in Benin

Arlington, VA—July 5, 2018—Management Sciences for Health (MSH) announced today that it has been selected by USAID to strengthen Benin’s health system with a focus on reducing maternal, newborn, children, and adolescent girls’ mortality and morbidity. MSH will also focus on decentralizing accountability for the health system to local communities—those who best understand their needs and are prepared to address them.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to return to Benin and partner with the Beninese people to strengthen the country’s health system,” said Marian W. Wentworth, MSH’s President & CEO. “Our team’s deep knowledge and expertise in maternal and child health combined with a focus on leadership, management and governance, will help Benin move its healthcare system toward being more efficient, responsive, and equitable, so that every woman and child has a greater opportunity at living a healthy and prosperous life.”

The program, Integrated Health Services Activity, will strengthen the delivery of high-impact malaria, family planning, maternal and child health, and gender-based violence services over a five-year period starting July 1, 2018. The program will work closely with local and national health officials to achieve strong government and citizen engagement in the health sector.

Implementing partners include four Beninese organizations—Association pour l’Education, la Sexualité et la Santé en Afrique (APESSA), Centre de Recherche en Reproduction Humaine et en Démographie (CERRHUD), Centre de Réflexions et d’Actions pour le Développement Intégré et la Solidarité (CeRADIS), Organisation pour le Développement Durable, le Renforcement et l’Auto promotion des Structures Communautaires (DEDRAS)—and US-based software company Dimagi, Inc.

MSH previously worked in Benin between 2011 and 2017 on a range of projects focused on malaria reduction and activities related to leadership and management, supply chain management, case management and quality assurance at all levels of the health system.