Integrating Equity Goals and Approaches into Policies, Plans, and Agendas

This involves setting goals for improved coverage and health outcomes among the poor, designing ways to achieve these goals, allocating additional resources for the poor, monitoring access by the poor, and empowering poor clients. To make health policies pro-poor, several key considerations must be taken into account. First, the policy must consider high-level poverty and/or low access to healthcare a priority. This involves including specific strategies to improve access to healthcare services, explicit objectives to reduce inequities in service use or health outcomes for the poor, and a clear expression of objectives, such as increasing contraceptive prevalence among the poor or reducing gaps between rural and urban areas. The policy must also consider the level of poverty and inequities in allocating financial resources. This involves developing equity-based indicators for monitoring and evaluation (M&E) plans, which can help track progress and identify areas where additional resources are needed. Furthermore, the policy must empower and engage the poor through poverty and equity analysis, putting inequity issues high on the policy agenda, identifying and engaging key stakeholders, setting equity goals, and designing pro-poor strategies. In the context of Kenya, integrating equity goals and approaches into the National RH Strategy involved several key steps. First, an analysis of the policy and financing review was conducted, followed by market segmentation analysis, review of poverty alleviation programs, and key informant interviews. Focus group discussions (FGDs) with urban and rural poor were also conducted to gather insights and perspectives. The policy dialogue in Kenya involved several levels, including dialogue between the poor and service providers at the community level, dialogue between the poor and policymakers at regional levels, and policy dialogue at the national level with policymakers. This dialogue helped to identify areas where equity goals and approaches could be incorporated into the National RH Strategy. Incorporating equity goals into the National RH Strategy in Kenya involved several key objectives, including increasing equitable access to reproductive health services, reducing unmet need among the poor, and increasing the contraceptive prevalence rate among the poor. Incorporating equity approaches involved mobilizing civil society to advocate for family planning in disadvantaged communities, developing mechanisms for engaging the poor or community-based organizations representing the poor in problem identification, planning, and advocacy, and developing culturally appropriate communication strategies to communicate with communities and families about family planning and contraception. Overall, integrating equity goals and approaches into policies, plans, and agendas is critical for ensuring that health policies are pro-poor and address the needs of the most vulnerable populations. By considering the level of poverty and inequities in allocating financial resources, empowering and engaging the poor, and incorporating equity goals and approaches into policy dialogue and reform, policymakers can help to reduce inequities in service use or health outcomes for the poor.