Implementation of three MoH projects was highly appreciated by the World Bank mission in Vienna

Since 2015, the Ministry of Health and the World Bank have been implementing three major healthcare projects: “Improving Health in the Service of People”, “Emergency Response to COVID-19 and Vaccination in Ukraine”, and “Strengthening the Health System and Saving Lives”. Each of the three large-scale projects implemented by the Ministry of Health in Ukraine received a favorable assessment of effectiveness and implementation during the World Bank mission in Vienna.

“Over the past 8 years of cooperation between the Ministry of Health and the World Bank, we have managed to quickly and effectively adjust the needs of the medical system. First to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, and now to adapt and implement new projects in the context of a full-scale war. We worked quickly and flexibly and implemented many important measures to maximize vaccination coverage, expand laboratory capacity, and continue projects to rebuild damaged medical infrastructure. During the martial law, for the first time in Ukraine, the mechanism of expanded support for the implementation of World Bank-funded healthcare projects was applied. This allows hospitals to purchase expensive equipment that they critically need under direct contracts with global manufacturers. The positive assessment of the effectiveness of joint healthcare projects by international partners and support for future projects is highly appreciated by the Ministry of Health and allows us to ensure access to healthcare services for every Ukrainian,” said Deputy Minister of Health, Chief State Sanitary Doctor of Ukraine Ihor Kuzin.

During the mission, the World Bank team, together with Ukrainian experts, analyzed the current state of effectiveness of joint projects and agreed on further steps within the existing projects. In particular, “Strengthening the Health System and Saving Lives” project aims to rebuild and modernize damaged medical facilities and purchase solar energy equipment. The first medical institutions that will participate in the project at the first stage of its implementation have already been identified. The project also provides for the purchase of the necessary equipment for physical rehabilitation and occupational therapy rooms, as well as the arrangement of a psychological relief space at the primary level of medical care. An agreement was reached to engage UN agencies in cooperation to implement activities in certain areas.

Furthermore, thanks to the implementation of “Emergency Response to COVID-19 and Vaccination in Ukraine” project, Ukraine has established a modern vaccine storage system that complies with the cold chain requirements. Healthcare facilities and regional disease control and prevention centers are equipped with high-quality WHO refrigerators and freezers, with a total of 5,168 units, at a cost of UDS 14.7 million.

Particular attention is paid to compliance with the World Bank’s environmental and social policies. This is ensured during the implementation of all activities under joint projects, including the implementation and purchase of equipment kits for the decontamination of epidemically hazardous medical waste. These will allow medical facilities to treat and disinfect medical waste, thus saving money on disposal costs and providing such services to other medical facilities.

A thorough analysis of the effectiveness of the results achieved under the joint projects and the World Bank’s recommendations for optimizing the planned activities will be presented in the final memo based on the results of the mission.

For reference: At the World Bank mission, the following professionals participated in the HEAL project: Сaryn Bredenkamp, who served as the Practice Lead and Head of the Project’s Working Group; Jakub Kakitek, a Senior Health Specialist; Elvira Anadolu, also a Senior Health Specialist and the Head of the “Improving Health in the Service of People” project’s Working Group; Shuo Zhang, a Senior Health Specialist and the Head of the “Emergency Response to COVID-19 and Vaccination in Ukraine” project’s Working Group. International consultants Arthur ten Have and Akiko Kitamura were also part of the team, along with Olena Doroshenko, a Senior Health Economist. World Bank experts in financial management and procurement were also involved.

The Ukrainian side was represented by a team of experts from the Ministry of Health, the National Health Service of Ukraine, and consultants from the World Bank’s Joint Projects Implementation Group. The delegation was led by the project coordinator, Deputy Minister of Health, Chief State Sanitary Doctor of Ukraine Ihor Kuzin.