Map Photo    
Pattern Pattern
Leadership, Management and Sustainability Program  
  Gradient
 		 Strengthening health programs worldwide  
 
Search LMS Site:
Democratic Republic of Congo

Children outside the Masuika Health Center in Masuika Health Zone, Kasai Occidental Province. Photo by Kristin Cooney, 2008.

 

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), formerly known as Zaire, is the third largest country in Africa by area, and has a population of approximately 66 million.  In 1998 the Second Congo War began, devastating the country and killing over 5 million people, more than any other war since World War II.  Many of the DRC health indicators are worse today than they were in 1990.  From 1990 to 2004 infant mortality went from 96 to 129 cases per 1000 live births, and the TB prevalence rate went from 226 to 551 per 100,000.  Maternal mortality was measured at 870 per 100,000 live births in 1990, and went up to 990 per 100,000 by the year 2000, these rates are among the highest in the world.


In  2008 LMS received field support funding from USAID/DRC to implement a project to reduce infant, child, and maternal morbidity in 23 rural health zones in Kasai Oriental and Kasai Occidental, two provinces in west/central DRC.




EXPERIENCE IN COUNTRY


Strengthening Primary Health Care Service Delivery

At the health facility level, the LMS/DRC project will introduce a Fully Functional Service Delivery Point (FFSDP) methodology to give health facility staff the tools to improve the quality of service delivery and service management across a range of basic services. The project will also implement a Leadership Development Program (LDP) with teams of provincial and zonal health program staff to ensure a common vision and clear understanding of roles and responsibilities, and to build leadership and management capabilities. Key areas of technical focus will include: strengthening integrated management of childhood illness (IMCI); providing education and training and developing a referral system for the treatment of obstetric fistula; strengthening and expanding prevention, treatment, and care for TB, malaria, and HIV; assisting provincial and health zone structures to develop a rapid response capability to identify, diagnose, and address infectious disease outbreaks; improving integration of RH/FP and HIV/AIDS services through education, training, and coordination with drug logistics and supply systems; and promoting access to clean water and improved hygiene and sanitation through the “village assaini” (clean/healthy village) model.
Profile
Population 66,515,000
Infant Mortality Rate per 1,000 live births 92
Maternal Mortality Rate per 100,000 live births 990
HIV/AIDS Adult Prevalence
 		1.4%
Population Living Below US$2 per day
 		n/a
Life Expectancy at Birth, Both Sexes
 		53 years
Source: PRB World Population Data Sheet, WHO

 


News
*
arrow Fully Functional Service Delivery Point Methodology Introduced in DRC
Feb 16, 2010
Since October 2009, the LMS/DRC project has been introducing the Fully Functional Service Delivery Point methodology in 23 health zones in Kasai Oriental and Kasai Occidental Provinces.

  
arrow Successful Launch of Leadership Program in DRC
Dec 15, 2009
LMS launched a Leadership Development Program (LDP) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in September 2009 to strengthen local capacity in the management of primary health care services.