The Côte d’Ivoire Hospitals Programme is making important contributions to Target 3.8 of Sustainable Development Goal 3. SDG 3 is ‘Good Health and Well-Being’, aiming to “ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”. Within SDG 3, Target 3.8 aims to “Achieve universal health coverage, including financial risk protection, access to quality essential health-care services and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all.”
Côte d’Ivoire has the 187th lowest quality of care over 195 countries, as ranked in terms of prevalence of preventable deaths (mortality that could have been prevented in the presence of effective care) (Source: World Bank, 2020). In addition, Côte d’Ivoire has the highest prevalence of preventable deaths in sub-Saharan Africa, and its rate of 128 deaths attributable to low-quality health care per 100,000 is higher than most West African countries (Source: World Bank, 2020). Preventable deaths are often related to challenges accessing health care services. During the construction phase, five of the six sites have their own dedicated infirmary with a trained nurse on site. This provides an important first aid facility as well as acting as an encouragement to the workers on site to access primary health care services. At Bouaké, the site management have established a partnership with a nearby health centre to ensure that workers have access to appropriate first aid and primary health care services.
In addition, NMSI, working with their sub-contractors, are currently ensuring that all workers employed across all the six sites of the programme have been provided with an annual medical check-up, at no cost to themselves. By looking after the health of all workers on the programme, representing nearly 1,500 women and men, NMSI is increasing access to, and engagement with, primary health care services, even before any of the new hospitals are up and running.
