The project aims to improve the sexual and reproductive health of women and teenage girls, as well as the health of newborns and children in the two departments of Haiti’s Grand Sud region that were most affected by Hurricane Matthew in October 2016. It is strengthening 28 health institutions by, among other things, repairing infrastructure, providing equipment and medicines and training staff. By improving access to and quality of integrated health services focused on the needs of women and adolescent girls, the project aims to reduce teenage pregnancies by 75% and provide access to 72,000 more women to a modern contraceptive method. The project also aims to strengthen the Haitian government’s capacities in health sector management, coordination and monitoring at the central and departmental levels. It is estimated that, every year, approximately 15,400 pregnant women, 3,000 women who are potential victims of gender based violence and 3,400 children are to benefit from the services provided by the health institutions supported by the project.
The project’s expected outcomes include: (1) improved front-line health care and services in the two target departments, particularly in sexual and reproductive health and nutrition, that take into account gender equality and women’s rights; and (2) greater use of quality health services, particularly by women of childbearing age, mothers and children under five, in part through a strengthened community participation approach.