Gavi commissioned Consulting Group Curatio Sarl to assist the Ministry of Health and the National Immunization Program (NIP) in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in developing country proposals to submit to Gavi for approval the objective of significantly increasing the coverage and equity of the current immunization program.
The CGC team was requested to work closely with the Ministry of Health, the NIP and Gavi Partners in each country to develop a proposal to use these additional funds that would have a profound and measurable impact in increasing the coverage and equity of immunization services in both countries. The need for this support and the proposed interventions were expected to be evidence-based and linked to the desired outcomes. Tasks performed by the CGC team included:
- Desk review of key programmatic documents and reports
- Review immunization coverage data from available sources, triangulating the information to determine an overview of current coverage
- Meet with stakeholders and key informants to develop a work plan for consultancy, including timelines and deliverables
- Interview all key informants on the current performance of the immunization program to identify challenges and opportunities to increase coverage and equity
- Identify key interventions currently underway that are having a positive impact on increasing coverage and equity.
- Identify new potential interventions that can impact increased coverage and equity, emphasizing identifying under-immunized populations and ways of reaching them with immunization services.
- Identify potential systemic improvements in the operations or efficiency of health infrastructure and systems.
- Based on the needs in the country and guidelines for additional HSS support, using the Gavi template, develop a narrative proposal with supporting data explaining the approach:
- Include the targeted C&E bottlenecks, the key activities, how they address them, and how progress is tracked over time.
- The narrative was required to provide a clear and evidence-based theory of change for how the proposed activities address C&E bottlenecks.
- Develop an updated workplan & budget (using the Gavi simplified template)
- Develop indicators to include in the Grant Performance Framework
- Mapping of potential partners that could implement the activities developed in the proposal.
- Finalize a completed application of prioritized investments following the consultation, considering the impact of such proposals/activities concerning immunization coverage (i.e., the number of children to be reached).
- In line with the first HSS consultation, develop costed plans in preparation for consultations.