Press Release: IMF Welcomes UK's International Health Partnership Initiative

September 6, 2007

Press Release No. 07/188

Mr. Rodrigo de Rato, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), welcomed the International Health Partnership, a new initiative launched on September 5, 2007 in London by the government of the United Kingdom. The Initiative involves governments of developing and developed countries, as well as heads of major international agencies involved in improving health, who commit to working effectively together with renewed urgency to build sustainable health systems and improve health outcomes in low and middle income countries. The goal of the partnership is to enhance the coverage of health services for achieving the health- and AIDS-related Millennium Development Goals.

"I welcome this great initiative, which recognizes that an effective healthcare system strengthens the social fabric and contributes to sustainable growth. The Fund will continue working with its member countries within its core areas of expertise and will continue to assist them in formulating policies and strengthening institutions to enable them to effectively use the aid mobilized under the Health Partnership," Mr. de Rato said.

A key element of the IMF's Medium-Term Strategy is to assist countries in strengthening policies and institutions for the effective utilization of aid. The objective is to help countries spend and absorb all available resources consistent with macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability. IMF-supported programs in the last few years have integrated the use of additional aid, and fully support scaled-up poverty-reducing expenditure, particularly in health and education.

Volatility and unpredictability of aid are a major impediment to macroeconomic and sectoral policy formulation. The IMF welcomes the Partnership's emphasis on improved coordination of external support and provision of long-term resources in a predictable manner. This will help countries develop their spending plans in a medium-term context.

The IMF also supports the Partnership's call for aid recipients to increase their own resources allocated to health. Strengthening domestic revenue mobilization should be an integral part of any strategy for scaling up aid. The Fund also supports the commitment of aid recipients to plan and to establish accountability mechanisms for improving health outcomes. Strengthening fiscal institutions and public financial management systems is critical for effective utilization of available resources.

IMF EXTERNAL RELATIONS DEPARTMENT

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