Egypt: World Bank provides $400m to boost universal health insurance system
Source: Middle East Insurance Review | Jul 2020
The World Bank’s board of executive directors has approved a $400m project to support Egypt’s Universal Health Insurance System (UHIS) as the North African country struggles with rising numbers of new coronavirus cases.
The project will support the government of Egypt to put in place the building blocks of the UHIS; to roll the system out in phase I governorates; and to offer temporary financial protection to the most vulnerable across the country to protect them from high out-of-pocket health expenditures resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak.
The project is also complementary to the World Bank-financed COVID-19 Emergency Response Project that aims to support the immediate operational challenges and critical areas of support identified as gaps in Egypt’s national COVID-19 response.
Egypt announced its first confirmed COVID-19 case on 14 February and the first death from the coronavirus on 8 March.
“We are pleased to partner with the World Bank to support Egypt’s universal health insurance system, which will help Egyptians access affordable healthcare they need without suffering financial hardships. The project will support Egypt to achieve long-term stability in health financing with less dependence on state budget and less exposure to economic fluctuations,” said Egypt minister of finance Dr Mohamed Maait.
“Our support will help Egypt increase its coverage of the UHIS in six governorates, strengthen UHIS-related governance and institutions, and also provide temporary financial protection against high out-of-pocket health expenditures for vulnerable populations across the country,” said World Bank country director for Egypt, Yemen, and Djibouti Marina Wes.
Over the years, the World Bank has strengthened its engagement in Egypt’s health sector, including the ‘Transforming Egypt’s Healthcare System Project’, which was launched in September 2018 to help improve health service delivery in Egypt. M