In the 2000s, more than 30 countries in sub-Saharan Africa introduced Performance-Based Financing (PBF) into their healthcare systems. However, limited research had examined how PBF programs were placed on national policy agendas in Africa.
Investigators at R4D International conducted an in-depth study on the policy process behind the introduction of PBF in Cameroon. Their research revealed that:
✔️ A group of policy entrepreneurs from the World Bank played a key role in shaping PBF adoption.
✔️ These actors used multiple forms of influence—including financial, ideational, network-based, and knowledge-driven approaches—to advance the policy.
✔️ By leveraging ongoing health sector reforms, these policy entrepreneurs collaborated with senior government officials to successfully place PBF on the national health agenda.
Scientific Publications:
The following peer-reviewed articles were published by R4D International investigators based on findings from this project:
- Agnes Gatome-Munyua, Isidore Sieleunou, Edwine Barasa, Freddie Ssengooba, Kaboré Issa, Sabine Musange, Otieno Osoro, Suzan Makawia, Christelle Boyi-Hounsou, Eugenia Amporfu & Uchenna Ezenwaka (2022) Applying the Strategic Health Purchasing Progress Tracking Framework: Lessons from Nine African Countries, Health Systems & Reform, 8:2, DOI: 10.1080/23288604.2022.2051796
- Gatome-Munyua A, Sieleunou I, Sory O, Cashin C. Why Is Strategic Purchasing Critical for Universal Health Coverage in Sub-Saharan Africa? Health Syst Reform. 2022 Mar 1;8(2):e2051795. doi: 10.1080/23288604.2022.2051795. PMID: 35446198.
- Isidore Sieleunou, Denise Diane Magne Tamga, Joseph Maabo Tankwa, Promise Aseh Munteh & Elise Virginie Longang Tchatchouang (2021) Strategic Health Purchasing Progress Mapping in Cameroon: A Scoping Review, Health Systems & Reform, 7:1, DOI: 10.1080/23288604.2021.1909311
- Isidore Sieleunou, Denise Diane Magne Tamga, Joseph Maabo Tankwa, Promise Aseh Munteh & Elise Virginie Longang Tchatchouang. (2021) Strategic Health Purchasing Progress Mapping in Cameroon: A Scoping Review. Health Systems & Reform 7:1.
- Isidore Sieleunou, Anne-Marie Turcotte-Tremblay, Manuela De Allegri, Jean-Claude Taptué Fotso, Habakkuk Azinyui Yumo, Denise Magne Tamga, Valéry Ridde, How does performance-based financing affect the availability of essential medicines in Cameroon? A qualitative study, Health Policy and Planning, Volume 34, Issue Supplement_3, December 2019, Pages iii4–iii19, https://doi.org/10.1093/heapol/czz084
- Sieleunou I, Turcotte-Tremblay AM, Fotso JT, Tamga DM, Yumo HA, Kouokam E, Ridde V. Setting performance-based financing in the health sector agenda: a case study in Cameroon. Global Health. 2017 Aug 1;13(1):52. doi: 10.1186/s12992-017-0278-9. Erratum in: Global Health. 2017 Aug 21;13(1):60. PMID: 28764720; PMCID: PMC5540528.
- Isidore Sieleunou, Anne-Marie Turcotte-Tremblay, Habakkuk Azinyui Yumo, Estelle Kouokam, Jean-Claude Taptué Fotso, Denise Magne Tamga & Valery Ridde (2017) Transferring the Purchasing Role from International to National Organizations During the Scale-Up Phase of Performance-Based Financing in Cameroon, Health Systems & Reform, 3:2, 91-104, DOI: 10.1080/23288604.2017.1291218
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