Lao Health and Nutrition Services Access Project II

The development objective of the Second Health and Nutrition Services Access Project for Lao People’s Democratic Republic is to improve equitable access, utilization, and quality of health and nutrition services in target areas and provide immediate response in case of an eligible crisis or emergency. The project comprises of four components. The first component, financing primary health care (PHC) services using national health insurance system consists of following sub-components: (i) financing quality- and performance-linked payments to health centers; (ii) implementing quality and performance scorecard (QPS) assessments using the revised QPS tool and vignettes; and (iii) capacity building for QPS implementation and verification. The second component, integrated PHC service delivery contributes to achieving the project development objective (PDO) through strengthening the PHC system so that it can deliver integrated services and reduce equity gaps in access to quality PHC services. It consists of following sub-components: (i) strengthening the PHC system for delivering integrated services; and (ii) deliver integrated services. The third component, adaptive learning and project management contributes to achieving the PDO through financing project management, external verification for performance-based condition (PBC) achievement, research, monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEAL) activities, providing technical assistance, transformative gender and equity actions, and institutional capacity building for environmental health and safety. The fourth component, contingent emergency response with a provisional zero allocation, is to allow for the reallocation of financing in accordance with the immediate response mechanism and to provide an immediate response to an eligible crisis or emergency as needed, including in areas strongly affected by climate change effects.