Resource Type: Brief
Authors: Avril Ogrodnick, Tesfaye Dereje, and Megan Meline
Published: 2/6/2012

Resource Description:

After signing the 2003 peace accord, Liberia’s government engaged with international partners to rehabilitate the health system. Between 2006 and 2010, the country’s infant and under-five mortality rates declined steadily. By 2010, the total number of new or reconstructed health facilities had increased to 550. Preventable conditions such as malaria and malnutrition, however, continue to be the underlying causes of death and disease.

The ongoing challenge has been to harness the higher levels of foreign assistance to shift from providing humanitarian relief to rebuilding the health system. Since 2009, Health Systems 20/20 has worked with the MOHSW to build a sustainable health system. A key factor in sustainability is establishing a sound healthcare financing system to ensure that health services provided are affordable for the country and protect individual households from catastrophic spending.