This will help the state to pump in the much needed resources to address malnutrition by strengthening the Anganwadi Centres in the state and also to achieve 100% sanitation and clean drinking water.

The workshop focused on emerging priorities for the State Health Sector Plan in areas related to, among others, maternal and child health, medical education, nutrition, water and sanitation, financial management, and convergence.

The event was chaired by the Development Commissioner Anup Mukherjee and attended by Principal Secretaries and other key officials of the departments including Health, Social Welfare, PHED, Panchayati Raj and Finance departments, and Mahadalit Mission.

Other than senior officials from DFID, representatives from UNICEF, UNFPA, WHO, the National Health Systems Resource Centre, the Asian Development Research Institute, Pathfinder International, and other national and local NGOs also participated in the workshop.

Government of Bihar and DFID are collaborating together to adopt a broad health sector approach to achieve the goals set out in the National Rural Health Mission and in the Millennium Development Goals. The aim of improving the health and nutritional status of people in Bihar and increasing access to better quality health, nutrition, and water and sanitation services is being done through the proposed Bihar Health Sector Reform Programme. A Health and Nutrition strategy, currently being developed by the Government of Bihar, will strengthen the health system in the state through better planning and convergence among key departments.

A unique convergent spirit has been adopted across key departments such as among the Departments of Health, Social Welfare, and Public Health Engineering coming together to design the programme.

The design phase of the programme involves developing a comprehensive health sector strategy, a nutrition policy, and an implementation plan. This includes developing a Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) for the three departments; reviewing existing organisational structure, human resource management systems and policies; reviewing procurement systems; and development of a Public Private Partnership Policy for the state.

The Bihar Technical Assistance Support Team (B-TAST) has been appointed by DFID to provide technical and managerial support to the Government of Bihar to prepare the State Health Sector Plan. The B-TAST has completed its diagnostic, a detail of which was discussed at the workshop. B-TAST is managed by a consortium of CARE International, Options Consulting, and IPE Global. The team consists of international and national consultants.

Comment

comments...

Health of a person is foremost and basic parameter to measure his prosparity and psosparity of state is guaged by health and the living standard of its people. Las year a survey conducted by citizen's alliance against malnutrition CAM, had revealed that over 58% children were malnourished in Bihar and 8.33% out of 58.4%0 were on verge of death. Bihar is the third most malnourished state in india. Fear of epidemic break out was expressed in another survey in first decade of 21st century in Bihar, which had coerced center as well as state to devise strategy to prevent alarming situation. Uk's DFID anticipation in health sector at this moment and Bihar's positive response can literaly solve great extent the health and its related other problems. Participation of NGO can also play crucial role in achieving the purpose.
Such kind of investment will bring prosparity and welfare in state so sincere effort on government's part is required at this juncture.

Farooque