Phnom Penh, 6 February 2018: P4H has been operational in Cambodia since 2009, with initial membership of four development partners. In late 2015 the local network was expanded, its objectives and ways of operation clarified and was renamed as P4HC+ to highlight its focus on Cambodia (C) and the fact that bi/multilateral partners in addition to those signed up for P4H membership at the global level joined the coordination group (+). As such, P4HC+ is made up of sixteen multi-/bilateral agencies and operates in conjunction to other existing coordination platforms, such as the Ministry of Health-led Technical Working Group for Health and the WHO-led Health Partners Meetings, that each have a different focus as well as target audience. During its initial two years, P4HC+ focused on coordination between its members to maximize alignment, collaboration, and cooperation, in support of the Cambodian government’s quest for universal health coverage.
These activities took place in a global context that saw UHC becoming prominent on the agenda of many countries and a key focus in the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. Cambodian government officials who were or are now key figures in the country’s quest for UHC, strengthened their collaboration, coordination and alignment through participation in the P4H Leadership for UHC (L4UHC) Programme.
2017 marks the celebration of the global P4H network’s 10th anniversary as well as 2 years of operation of P4HC+, during which time the mechanism achieved several objectives in terms of donor coordination and collaboration. P4HC+ allows development partners working in the field of social health protection toward UHC to engage with the Cambodian government in a harmonious manner by working toward a common view on behalf of its sixteen partners and maximizing technical/financial assistance. In order to clarify its activities in Cambodia during the last two years and to enhance its operations and engagement with the Cambodian Government, P4HC+ organized a half day workshop with government representatives from institutes active in the field of social health protection. They were joined during this event by P4H Focal Persons operating at other countries, P4H colleagues from the Coordination Desk and selected partners financially supporting P4H
The objectives of the morning session were to:
- Exchange information on P4HC+ and experiences from P4H in other countries on approaches towards coordination, alignment of activities and financial support for health financing and social health protection for UHC.
- Discuss perceptions and areas for collaboration on UHC between P4HC+ with the Government of Cambodia.
In the afternoon P4HC+ held a meeting with representatives from bi/multilateral agencies that are not regular partner of the network and NGOs and private consulting agencies active in the field of health financing for UHC. The objective of the meeting was to find ways to improve dialogue and collaboration with them.
List of Participants of the day:
- P4HC+ : USAID, World Bank, WHO, ILO, GIZ, UNICEF, SDC, KfW, JICA, US Secretary (USAID), Australian DFAT
- P4H Coordination team
- NGOs and consulting firms: RACHA, MoPotsyo, Buddhism For Health, GFA Consulting, Global Link Management, Health Policy+, Oxfam, Health Action Coordinating Committee (HACC Cambodia), Médecins Sans Frontières, GRET
- Government Ministries: Ministry of Health, Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation
