Making The Most of It: Optimizing Human Resources for Health for Family Planning

Human resources for health (HRH) refer to the diverse collective of health workers that drive, manage, and lead health systems. They are doctors, nurses, midwives, community health workers (CHWs), and social workers, but also pharmacists, shop owners, health managers, and educators. This workforce provides health services in various settings, such as hospitals, clinics, offices, virtual…

In Syria’s Ongoing Conflict, One Volunteer Group Continues to Save Lives

More commonly known as the White Helmets, the Syria Civil Defence (SCD) is a community-led group of volunteers who set out in 2013 to provide emergency assistance to the Syrians during the conflict years. Over the years, this fledging organization has been supported by several international donors, including the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID),…

Development Works Here with Dana Tilson

We’re thrilled to welcome Dana Tilson! Dana is the Global Project Director for the Chemonics-led Frontier Health Markets (FHM) Engage project and a public health professional with more than two decades of experience. In this short interview, Dana shares more about her background, her views on engaging the private sector to improve health services, and…

The Next Global Shock: Will Tourism Be Ready?

With progress lagging towards reaching the 2030 sustainable development goals amidst compounding macroeconomic crises, the tourism sector offers an opportunity to accelerate inclusive and sustainable economic growth towards full and productive employment. However, recent events such as the global COVID-19 pandemic revealed how vulnerable the tourism sector is to external shocks – especially ones that…

Nigeria’s Drug Revolving Fund: A Conversation with Tukur Ibrahim

Drug revolving funds (DRFs) are a financing mechanism used in healthcare to improve access to essential drugs and medicines. The primary goal of a DRF is to ensure a steady supply of quality medications and to prevent stockouts or shortages in public health facilities, such as hospitals and health centers. The fund starts with an…

Perspective: What’s New About the Nairobi Declaration for Climate Investment

In convening the first ever Africa Climate Summit on September 4-6, Kenya’s President William Ruto sought to frame an African position in preparation for the upcoming U.N. Climate Summit, COP28, to be held in Dubai starting November 30. The resulting Nairobi Declaration endorses a series of proposals to reform the way multilateral development banks operate…

The Women, Peace and Security Agenda in Jordan – Reflecting and Learning

Bordered by Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia – countries who consistently rank amongst the lowest for gender equality – the Government of Jordan have often prided themselves in being a leader in the Middle East in women’s rights and in advancing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda.  In 2018, the Government of Jordan took a…

Unlocking the Power of “Super Levers” for Sustained Instructional Reform

Why do certain educational reforms endure and flourish while others fade away, or only take root in specific schools or with certain teachers? What does it truly require to maintain new teaching practices at large scale over the long haul?  In a concerted effort to answer these questions, earlier this year Chemonics spearheaded a collaboration…

Best Practices for Centering Indigenous Peoples in Development Projects

Engaging Indigenous Peoples is essential to driving forward locally led development, ensuring international development projects respond to and align with Indigenous Peoples’ self-determined goals and needs, and deepening projects’ impact and sustainability. This engagement is encoded in USAID’s Policy on Promoting the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (PRO-IP), but the question remains: How can Indigenous Peoples’…

Redefining Safe Water: A Holistic Approach to WASH

Nearly 1 billion people around the world currently experience water scarcity and the number may rise to 2.4 billion people by 2050. Lack of access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services can expose people to preventable health risks, trigger or exacerbate conflict, perpetuate inequality, and hinder participation in society. Why is “safe” access important?…

Mobilizing People to Mobilize Domestic Resources in the Philippines

In low income countries, government debt rose by 7 percent to 66 percent in 2020 and, since 2021, half of those countries are at high risk of debt distress or already in debt distress. Without being able to anticipate the next global crisis, there is increasing urgency to mobilize domestic resources to promote sustained economic…

3 Questions with Tim Sparkman on Capturing the Impact of Investment Facilitation

Chemonics’ Investment Readiness Learning Initiative is a first-of-its-kind, multi-year, multi-project learning initiative designed to deepen the evidence base for investment readiness factors, develop strategies for greater private sector engagement, and analyze other critical aspects of investment facilitation in emerging markets. The initiative, conducted in partnership with The Canopy Lab, works with two Chemonics-led, USAID-funded programs,…