USAID Burkina Faso Community Health Activity

Deadline: 25-Oct-2024

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is seeking applications for a cooperative agreement from qualified entities to implement the USAID Burkina Faso Community Health Activity.

The overall goal of the USAID Health Program in Burkina Faso is to sustainably improve the health and well-being of the Burkinabe people. This will be done by partnering with the GOBF, communities, local organizations (including the private sector), and other stakeholders to strengthen quality, integrated, and resilient primary health care systems. These partnership efforts will focus on primary health care systems that address HIV/AIDS, malaria, maternal and child health, nutrition, voluntary family planning, reproductive health, and health systems strengthening (HSS), and are capable of preventing, detecting, and responding to emerging infectious diseases, with particular attention to health equity and advancing women’s, adolescents’ and children’s health.

The purpose of this new community health activity is to strengthen the access to, use, and quality of community-based health services, which is supporting the overall health program goal.

Strategic approaches in support of the activity purpose and goal will include strengthening and protecting the community health workforce; partnering with communities in the management of their health; reducing gender and other barriers to care seeking and promoting healthy behaviors, including through context-specific and appropriate behavior change; and expanding multi sectoral partnerships with local leaders, organizations, and platforms for community health. With Global Health Security in Development (GHSD) funding, this activity will also support integrated, community-based surveillance as a component of broader efforts to strengthen integrated disease surveillance and response and the interoperability of early warning systems with other sectors through other USAID- and non-USAID funded activities.

USAID’s health-responsive objectives fall under ICS Goal 3, Promote Equitable, Economic Opportunity and Social Development and under Goal 3, Objective 3.2, Assistance and development programs improve the health of the people of Burkina Faso.

Funding Information

• USAID intends to provide up to $50 million to support program activities and finance the services of contemplated technical implementing instruments over a five-year period.
• The anticipated period of performance is five (5) years subject to funds availability. The estimated start date will be on/around December 01st, 2024.

Expected Results

• These expected results are as follows:
  • Result 1: Improved Access to, and Use of, Community-based Health Interventions
    • IR 1.1. Increased Use of Quality, Priority Health Interventions and Care at Individual, Household and Community Levels
    • IR 1.2. Improved Readiness of Public and Private Sector Health Structures to Support Quality, Evidence-informed, Community-based Interventions and Care
    • IR 1.3. Sustained Equitable Access to, and Use of, Priority, Community-based Interventions during Shocks and Stresses
  • Result 2: Increased Engagement of Local Institutions and Civil Society in Community-based Health Interventions and Disease Control
    • IR 2.1. Increased Local Capacity to Implement Relevant Health Policies and Practices
    • IR 2.2. Increased Effectiveness of Civil Society, Local Institutions and Systems to Plan, Coordinate and Manage Quality, Shock-responsive, Priority, Community-based Health Interventions
    • IR 2.3. Increased Participation by Women, Youth and Marginalized Groups in Community Health
  • Result 3: Adaptive Learning and Use of Evidence for Priority Health Interventions and National Health Security Strengthened
    • IR 3.1. Improved Availability of Quality, Timely, Community-based Health Information
    • IR 3.2. Increased Community Capacity and Ownership for Health Information Analysis and Use
    • IR 3.3. Optimized Use of Community-based Health Surveillance and Reporting Systems

Expected Outcomes

• Expected outcomes under the Community Health Activity could include but are not limited to:
  • Outcome 1: Management and Coordination of the Community Health System Improved
    • USAID will support efforts that improve planning, budgeting, coordination, management, administration, and oversight of the community health interventions at the district level and below. Local community health actors should work in close coordination and synergy with HSS activities to support central-level strategies and policies related to community health.
  • Outcome 2: Human Resources Developed and Engaged 
    • USAID is seeking to support appropriate solutions to the myriad challenges that plague human resources for health at the community level. Specifically, USAID will support locally-developed approaches to resolving issues related to the recruitment, training, retention, and motivation of community health actors, with emphasis on those issues that drive the access to, and quality of, healthcare.
  • Outcome 3: Improved Availability and Management of Essential Commodities and Equipment 
    • At the community level, USAID seeks to support approaches to encourage the rational use of medicines and commodities, address localized stock outs, and ensure proper storage and handling with controls that minimize the risk of leakage or falsification. USAID is also interested in approaches that address the proper maintenance and upkeep of equipment. Under certain circumstances, USAID may also support procurement of critically needed equipment where these investments will have a significant impact on reducing child and maternal morbidity and mortality.
  • Outcome 4: Community Health System Financing and Affordability of Healthcare Services Improved 
    • USAID will strengthen health financing at the local community level to improve efficiency and ensure transparency and accountability for both budgeting and expenditures and leverage local resource mobilization for funding SBC activities, referral and counter-referral systems, coordination with HSS activities, and promotion of subscriptions to local health insurance schemes. Thus, USAID will address issues of affordability within the health system through support to community-based health insurance organizations and implementation of new approaches under the country’s health financing strategy.
  • Outcome 5: Community Health Information Systems Strengthened 
    • USAID/Burkina Faso will support appropriate, cost-effective approaches that strengthen data quality and use at the regional and district levels and below to inform services, policy, budgeting, and decision-making. The CH Activity will support districts to strengthen the community-based surveillance to detect, prevent and respond to outbreaks and other health threats.
  • Outcome 6: Access to Primary Health Care Increased and Improved
    • USAID will support districts with both technical and financial assistance through their work plans to scale up with fidelity high-impact interventions at facility and community levels, while focusing increased attention on urban and peri-urban areas, which are home to increasing segments of the population; foster linkages between the CHWs, the community health posts and CSPSs; strengthen the delivery of integrated health care service packages, supply chains at community-levels, and supervision of CHWs; and the management and deployment of health care outposts and outreach services in resilient geographic focus regions.
  • Outcome 7: Enhanced participation by Communities, CSOs and Local Governments 
    • At the community level, USAID will build and strengthen the management capacities of local community health actors, community-based, civil society, and faith-based organizations, and local governments to participate in the development and timely submission, implementation and oversight of health work plans, and for needed oversight of health activities. USAID will also support engagement by these entities in the management of the health system; ideally this engagement will be built into the work plans.
  • Outcome 8: Improved Enabling Environment and Increased Adoption of Priority Behaviors 
    • USAID will support local organizations to play a pivotal role in implementing key SBC and advocacy activities; in identifying effective strategies for strengthening community participation and SBC in urban and peri-urban settings; and in identifying new and innovative modalities for reaching underserved, marginalized segments of the populations, including women and youths, with key services; recognizing that these SBC organizations are closely in touch with their communities and understand the specific factors that influence and drive priority and gateway behaviors.

Geographic Code 

• The geographic code for the procurement of commodities and services under this program is 937.

Eligibility Criteria

• Eligibility for this NOFO is restricted to local organizations in accordance with ADS 303.3.6.5.d, Restricted Eligibility Based on Programmatic Purposes. USAID’s determination to restrict eligibility to local organizations is based on increasing the Agency’s partner base by restricting eligibility to organizations that have not previously received a direct award from USAID; and on developing the capability of local entities or locally established entities by making direct awards to such entities that have previously received subawards or grants under contracts or cooperative agreements and those local entities that have not previously received any type of subaward or grant.
• Please refer to ADS 303.6 for complete information on local entity definition. Below are important elements that they wish to highlight:
  • Must be local actors in Burkina Faso (BF). When determining if an entity is a “local actor” for the purposes of this NOFO, USAID will consider:
    • Whether the entity is legally organized under the laws of Burkina Faso.
    • Whether the entity has its principal place of business or operations in Burkina Faso.
    • Whether the entity is majority owned by individuals who are citizens or lawful permanent residents of Burkina Faso and
    • Whether the entity is managed by a governing body, the majority of whom are citizens or lawful permanent residents of Burkina Faso.
  • Cannot be a U.S-based organization. U.S-based organizations are not eligible as prime awardees under this NOFO.

For more information, visit Grants.gov.