1. Background of the Project
In Southern Sudan, civil war arose between the government of Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in 1983. In January 2005, the conflict ended with the signing of a peace agreement. This prolonged conflict had a tremendous effect on all sectors of national development including health. As a result, the infant and under-five mortality rates (IMR and U5MR) were estimated to be 150 and 250 per 1,000 live births (2001) respectively, and maternal mortality (MMR), at 1,700 per 100,000 live births (2000) in Southern Sudan. These were the highest figures in the world. Regarding human resources in the health sector, the staffing shortage is very serious. In a population of eight million, there are only 225 doctors, 443 medical assistants and 1,355 nurses. In addition, in many cases, health care workers’ skills are not high due to insufficient education and training.
In “Health Policy (2007-2011)” formulated in 2007, the Ministry of Health of the Government of Southern Sudan (MOH/GOSS) emphasized development of human resources for health (HRH). In “Strategic Plan for Human Resource for Health 2007-2017” formulated the same year, the MOH/GOSS defined its focus as (1) institutionalize and operationalize planning for human resources for HRH at different levels, (2) develop a HRH information system (HRIS), (3) project the required health workforce, (4) develop capacity of training institutions, (5) improve management practices for the health workforce, (6) develop legal and professional frameworks for standards and quality, (7) develop mechanisms for mobilization and efficient use of resources to support health for HRH planning and development, (8) develop research capability in HRH, (9) develop sustainable partnerships for HRH. As for (3) project the required health workforce, various initial and in-service trainings were implemented by multilateral and bilateral development assistance agencies and NGOs. However, the MOH/GOSS did not get a grasp of these trainings substantially and considered that some trainings did not fit the needs of local input and their policies. Also, in Southern Sudan, decentralization of power from the central government to local governments has been occurring. While the MOH/GOSS exercises jurisdiction over policy- and plan-making as well as personnel affairs of human resource development (HRD), State MOHs which are positioned as part of the local government have the responsibility to project the required health workforce. Thus, in order to develop HRH, close coordination between the MOH/GOSS and State MOHs is required.
In this context, the GOSS requested Japanese government assistance in capacity development that will enable the GOSS/MOH and State MOHs to implement training for HRH based on the needs of medical and health services, through the reinforcement of health administration capacities and implementation of pilot trainings for HRH.
