DECENTRALISATION AND GENDER
Financial arrangements In order for the project to be sustainable and to inspire councils to use the same method for other issues than maternal health at a later stage, the team proposes that existing funds should be used as far as possible, ie. the Local Government Capital Development Grant and the Capacity Building Grant. In addition, there are specific funds allocated to health interventions, e.g. the Community Health Fund or the Health Basket Fund. There are, however, certain challenges: - The sums allocated to the districts show great variations – as they are based on the number of inhabitants as well as performance indicators - Some of the districts may have specific plans for the funds Some of the districts may not have the necessary administrative capacity for assessing the funding possibilities and may therefore need assistance. It is vital that the plans and initiatives are integrated in the planning and budget cycle – at district, ward and village level. Other funding possibilities The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, Norad, is developing a NorwayTanzania Partnership Initiative (NTPI) focusing on maternal health and child health. Within this framework, it might be possible for PMO-RALG to ensure some funding for the following: - the implementation of activities in districts where no other funding is available - the PMO-RALG follow up and coordination - the initial base line study and the final assessment Importance of local culture and traditions During the visit to Pangani the team observed that issues related to maternal health seem to be strongly related to traditional cultural attitudes and values where local civil society informal organisations and leaders can play a key role. The district administration cannot change traditional cultural attitudes to child birth, but it can influence the choice women make by providing safe quality facilities and services at a reasonable price. Focus on civil society and religious organisations The importance of traditional cultures in matters related to maternal health implies that phase two must have a strong focus on civil society, informal as well as formal. This implies that civil society organisations and religious organisations must play a leading role. This is particularly important in a district like Pangani where few members of the district administration staff are from the district. At a practical level, the above will imply that at least 50 percent of the persons involved in phase two exchange visits and seminars should represent elected representatives (councillors, including women special seats), as well as NGOs, CBOs and FBOs. Focus on women Maternal health is very much seen as a women's issue. This implies that approximately 50% of the persons involved in phase two exchange visits and seminars should be women.
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