El Salvador joins the Alliance for Primary Health Care in the Americas – PAHO/WHO

Washington DC, December 2, 2024 (PAHO) – The Ministry of Health of El Salvador (MINSAL) has joined the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) through the establishment of the Primary Health Care Advisory Board (PHC) in El Salvador. The objective of the Advisory Board is to address inequalities in access to health, universal coverage and emerging challenges such as climate change, demographic and epidemiological transitions using the Primary Health Care approach.

At a ceremony held at El Salvador’s Ministry of Health to mark the occasion, PAHO Director Dr. Jarbas Barbosa welcomed El Salvador to the Alliance. “PAHO is fully committed to supporting the Primary Health Care Advisory Board in El Salvador, and to continuing to provide technical cooperation to ensure the transformation of the health system,” he said.

The event was attended by the Minister of Health of El Salvador, Francisco Alabí Montoya; the Country Manager of the World Bank for El Salvador and Costa Rica, Carine Clert; the IDB Representative in El Salvador, Olga Gómez, and the Interim Representative of the PAHO in El Salvador, Ángel Manuel Álvarez.

“This Alliance is a crucial step in the transformation of our health system. With the support of strategic allies such as PAHO, the IDB and the World Bank, El Salvador is consolidating itself as a regional benchmark in the implementation of innovative policies to guarantee quality health services for our population,” stated Minister Alabi.

The Consultative Table is an innovative governance mechanism at the national level to facilitate coordination between the Alliance and the Ministry of Health of El Salvador. It will promote the alignment of technical and financial resources towards the country’s strategic objectives, as well as ensure coherence between current and future projects.

“At the IDB we celebrate El Salvador’s initiative to convene this Consultative Table, which reinforces a model of how the Alliance can be effectively implemented in the countries. This strategic space is key because it aligns the efforts of PAHO, the IDB and the World Bank with the country’s priorities and facilitates collaboration with other national and regional institutions,” said Olga Gómez García, IDB representative in El Salvador.

“The creation of the Consultative Table for Primary Health Care in El Salvador maximizes collaboration between partners for the development and effectiveness of interventions, contributing to improving the health of the population and strengthening human capital in El Salvador,” Carine Clert, World Bank Country Manager for El Salvador and Costa Rica joined.

The Alliance for Primary Health Care in the Americas

The Alliance for Primary Health Care in the Americas was launched in December 2023 by PAHO, the IDB and the World Bank, with the objective of strengthening investment, innovation and the implementation of policies and initiatives to transform healthcare systems. health in the Region, with a strong emphasis on primary health care.

Since its launch, the Alliance has been working with 9 countries in the region through a decentralized and participatory structure that encourages strategic and technical dialogue between the three organizations at the country level. El Salvador is the tenth country to join the Alliance. The Alliance supports the development of national PHC investment plans, provides guidance to countries to strengthen the resilience and capacity of their health systems, and cooperates to design and implement evidence-based interventions adapted to specific contexts and challenges.