World Health Day: in the DRC, only 39% of the population has access to essential health services, below the African average

The Minister of Public Health, Hygiene and Prevention, Samuel Roger Kamba Mulamba, has sent a message to the Congolese nation on the occasion of 75ᵉ World Health Day, celebrated on Friday 7 April. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has chosen the theme "Health for All" for the year 2023.

In his message, the new minister emphasised universal health coverage (UHC), one of the international commitments to which the DRC has signed up. The aim of UHC is to enable all individuals to live in good health, and to promote well-being for all and at all ages.

The CSU is a public health policy strategy and objective that encompasses several sectors. Its implementation requires multisectoral and interdisciplinary interventions coordinated with other sectors", said Dr Roger Kamba, Minister for Public Health, Hygiene and Prevention.

He points out that one of the main indicators for assessing universal health coverage is the essential services coverage index, which in the DRC is estimated at just 39 %.

This composite indicator includes several sub-indicators relating to maternal and child health, the fight against communicable and non-communicable diseases, and the capacity of services to provide the necessary care. In the DRC, this index, estimated at 39%, is below the African average", he pointed out.

He explains this low coverage by the state of the Congolese healthcare system, which has long suffered from low funding from its own resources and is largely dependent on international aid. Approximately 42 % of healthcare expenditure is borne by households through direct payments or community funding.

Mr Kamba assures us that his ministry is working with all stakeholders to make quality health care and services available at all levels of the health system.

Four major problems linked to the Congolese health system

In his speech, Dr Jean-Jacques Mbungani's successor identified four main problems weakening the health system in the DRC:

• Health infrastructures and equipment that no longer meet WHO standards.
• Human resources, due to an imbalance in the organisation of courses and the quality of training, as well as inequitable distribution between rural and urban areas and between healthcare structures. Working conditions are not sufficiently motivating for healthcare staff.
• Medicines, vaccines and specific inputs. The supply of medicines, an essential element of quality healthcare, still poses problems in terms of affordability, accessibility and availability of quality services, and rational use.
• Health financing. The high cost of healthcare in relation to household income is a major challenge to the optimal use of healthcare services by all, without exclusion.

The Minister presented the broad outlines of his work at the head of the Ministry, highlighting universal health coverage as one of the major thrusts of his policy. He acknowledged that the challenges are enormous, focusing on two major projects: universal health coverage and the fight against pandemics and epidemics.