Description
SECTION C - PROGRAM DESCRIPTION EnRICH: Enhanced and Rapid Improvement of Community Health in Mindanao I. Introduction: The purpose of this Cooperative Agreement is to fund viable family planning and health related activities, which will help the ARMM and the local governments directly or indirectly to improve their health status in a sustainable way. II. Background: The Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) was created by law in August 1989. Actual turn ?over of governance took place on November 1990. Composing the region are the four provinces of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi; and the cities of Marawi and Isabela. The region has a population of about 2 million. Its four component provinces are among the most depressed in the Philippines with a 51%-54% poverty incidence, according to 1991data from NEDA. About 56% of the population are in the 15-64 years age bracket with an almost equal male to female ratio. The following health indicators show that the region is one of the lowest performers in the nation. Over the past years, USAID has been providing assistance to the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) through its programs administered under the Office of Population, Health and Nutrition (OPHN). The major USAID/OPHN activities include: Quality Assurance Program/ MGP Sentrong Sigla (Center of Wellness Certification) AIDS Surveillance and Education Control of Infectious Diseases Nutrition (Vitamin A and Food Fortification) Child Survival Programs. Policy and IEC activities Support to Well Family Midwife Clinics This year, a new project entitled ?EnRICH - Mindanao? will be initiated. USAID believes that it will supplement its other on-going health programs to help achieve Mission Objectives in ARMM. The health system in the region continues to perform poorly. A number of factors contribute to this. Delivery of health services is affected by armed conflict between Muslim separatists and the military. Displacement of civilian population occurs in some areas. Kidnappings by the Abu Sayyaf ? a known terrorist group, still have not been resolved. During the previous regional government, development funds from the National Government intended for health were not efficiently utilized. The devolution of health services to the local governments has led to poor implementation of health programs and services. And, funding for the health sector in the local municipal budget often receives a low priority among a number of Local Governments. There is also a general climate of uncertainty and instability in the region, which has slowed down development initiatives in the other sectors, like tourism, further inhibiting improvements in Family Planning, health and other services. III. Rationale and Objective Because this region regularly reports the lowest health and family planning statistics, USAID believes targeted, locality specific interventions are needed to improve the situation. The objective of this project is to fund viable family planning & health related projects, which will help the region and the local governments directly or indirectly improve their health status in a sustainable way. Under this project, USAID will provide assistance in the form of grants to fund activities aimed to increase contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) and to generally improve maternal and child health. Specifically, the ?ENRICH Grants? aims to: Increase Modern Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) of ARMM, from the lowest figures, to near National levels. Reduce high risk pregnancies Increase Vitamin A supplementation. Improve Tuberculosis Diagnosis and Treatment Improve other maternal & child health indicators USAID ? accredited Private Voluntary Organizations (PVOs) with common health objectives will spearhead the implementation of the projects. Activities may include but are not limited to: Community organizing and social mobilization Capability building activities to increase the Local Government Unit?s or the private sector?s capacity to deliver health services. Upgrading, rehabilitation of Primary Health Facilities Training of health service providers Development and implementation of behavior change campaigns. Installation of information systems. Other innovative FP activities. The Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao has special difficulties that require a unique approach. With the cooperation and support of the new Regional ARMM government, the local governments, Department of Health and the private sector, knowledge, use and access to Family Planning modern methods and Maternal and Child Health services, will be improved, contributing to the over all development in Mindanao. Amendments to the RFA are detailed in the unploaded documents: Document 1:questions rfa#9 Document 2:rfa no. 9 briefer