05.04.2017

Better health care

Citizens in Nepal are benefiting from recently introduced health insurance. German support has helped the country fill a healthcare gap.

With a big smile, Hom Nath Dhakal holds up a plastic card – proof that he now has health insurance. Until now, any medical treatment other than basic health care had to be paid for out of his own pocket – and if he couldn’t afford it, he managed without. But not any more: Hom Nath Dhakal is the first citizen of Nepal to use the social health protection phased in by the Government since April 2016.

Getting to this stage took a lot of preparation – from building political acceptance to establishing technical structures. On behalf of the German Government, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH has been actively involved in this process for many years, providing the Government of Nepal with support and advice on setting up the health insurance scheme. And Nepal is not the only country to close an insurance gap for its citizens with German support. GIZ has played its part in establishing similar schemes in India, Indonesia, Rwanda and Kenya.

GIZ can draw upon decades of experience in this field. It is currently involved in healthcare issues in over 80 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and, increasingly, Europe.