USAID Says its Committed to Helping Liberia Build a Stronger More Resilient, and Responsive Health System

For Immediate Release

Thursday, October 22, 2020

Monrovia, Liberia - USAID/Liberia Mission Director, Sara Walter, says USAID remains committed to working with its Liberian partners and all stakeholders in the health sector to help Liberia achieve the goal of building a stronger, more resilient, and responsive health system.

Speaking during a closeout event to mark the successful completion of its six-year Partnership for Advancing Community Based Services Activity (PACS), Director Walter shared the successful results the project achieved in assisting the health sector over the years.

She noted that from 2015 to 2020, the program trained, equipped, and compensated more than 600 community health assistants and nearly 100 community health supervisors to work alongside and mentor community health assistants who are today bringing care literally to people's doorsteps in some of Liberia most populous counties.

As part of the program, thousands of community health volunteers trained by PACS serve the very communities from which they come--assisting community health assistants and health supervisors to bring care to their neighbors and friends. 

As of August 2020, PACS-trained community health assistants carried out over 860 thousand household visits. They also conducted 66,128 visits with pregnant women and referred 9,268 to health facilities for delivery. 

Additionally, they screened and provided treatment for 71,860 cases of malaria, 7,825 cases of pneumonia, and 7,056 cases of diarrhea in Bong, Lofa, and Nimba Counties.

PACS also made a number of critical investments in disease prevention and control that are now paying huge dividends. 

For example, water sanitation and hygiene interventions supported by PACS have given more than 40,000 Liberians in Bong, Lofa, and Nimba Counties access to safe drinking water, protecting them from the many water-borne diseases to which they were previously exposed.

The USAID Mission Director said the challenge was to build on the successes achieved and further commit to transforming health outcomes by providing all Liberians access to quality community-based preventive and curative health care.

Also speaking at the closeout ceremony, Health Minister Wilhelmina Jallah thanked the United States Government through USAID for the numerous support to Liberia's health sector.

Over the years, USAID/Liberia, through its various health interventions, has worked to improve access to health care for all Liberians, especially the most vulnerable: women, girls, newborns, children under age five, including Ebola survivors.

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