Yemen Systems, Health, and Resiliency Project (USAID)

The USAID-supported Systems, Health, and Resiliency Project (SHARP) (2019-2023) focused on improving the quality and accessibility of health services with an emphasis on reproductive, maternal, newborn, child health, and nutrition, especially in hard-to-reach areas. SHARP’s three goals were to improve maternal and child health outcomes, increase community engagement in the health sector, and improve the resiliency of Yemen’s health system. 

Many of the projects achievements led to accomplishing these goals, including:

• Expanding the capacity of the health workforce by training 232 community midwives and 629 community reproductive health volunteers  to identify and facilitate disease treatment, and provide health information and services, such as family planning and immunization

• Mitigating the spread of infection in health facilities by implementing quality improvement practices

• Using social behavior change work to reach 5.5 million Yemenis with critical maternal, newborn and child, family planning, reproductive health, and nutrition information

• Training over 1,000 facility health workers and providing medical equipment and facility renovations and maintenance to more than 64 health centers in Aden, Lahj, and Ta’izz

• Strengthening data management and linkage to care by developing a health facility map showing the locations of providers and their services, and supporting the pilot-testing of a digitized health management information system 

SHARP reached numerous milestones by collaborating with communities, health facilities, local governments, and the Ministry of Public Health and Population. For example:

• Developing and providing Kangaroo Mother Care to 105 low birth weight babies 

• Providing health service education and awareness to nearly 50,000 people through local leaders and Imams

• Immunizing over 14,000 children with DPT3 by the time they reached 12 months of age

• Engaging with 681,878 people about the COVID-19 vaccine through social media

• Treating 16,344 cases of diarrhea in children under five

• Increasing Penta3 vaccination uptake by nearly 41% and reducing the vaccination dropout rate by over 50% in about a year in All Buraiqa District with a SMS vaccine reminder system

Due to the ongoing conflict in the country, SHARP had to work closely with multiple stakeholders and take unique approaches to address barriers. This resulted in the establishment of conflict resolution committees across nine districts in Yemen to surveil and respond to any potential local health conflicts that could disrupt healthcare delivery.

Through all of these achievements, SHARP has helped Yemen reinforce its health system to better serve over 1.8 million people regardless of where they are or the obstacles that arise. 

SHARP was implemented by JSI, Search for Common Ground, Yemen Family Care Association, and the National Yemeni Midwives Association.