22nd June, 2011
AMREF held a Stakeholders’ Forum on May 18, 2011, to share the organisation’s new Business Plan with a group of strategic partners and donors. The aim of the Forum was to get by-in and support for the Business Plan, which emphasises AMREF’s focus on communities, and in particular women’s and children’s health.
A total of 60 people attended the Forum, including representatives from the Ministries of Health in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, corporate and institutional donors, academic and research institutions, UN agencies and civil service organisations.
AMREF Director General Dr Teguest Guerma opened the forum with an introduction of the Business Plan, and of AMREF’s values and approach. She emphasised that AMREF’s key focus is on communities, which have the inherent power to change and improve themselves, with AMREF playing the role of catalyst. AMREF, she explained, is not an emergency organisation; it focuses on long-term health change in Africa by dealing with the root of the problems, by empowering the communities with knowledge and skills to make lasting change in Africa.
( Click on the image to view a picture slideshow of the forum )
Explaining the rationale behind the Business Plan, Dr Guerma told the stakeholders that AMREF is going through a transformation to become a truly global organisation, with a harmonised plan that will be owned by all its offices worldwide, as opposed to separate planning as has been in the past. The reorganisation was necessitated by several factors, including shifting donor priorities; competition for scarce resources; the need for AMREF to define its niche; the need to define shared priorities across the organisation; and the need for more effective and efficient use of limited funds.
Mette Kjaer, Dr John Nduba and Dr Peter Ngatia then expounded on the various components of the Business Plan, which has been developed for the period October 2011 - September 2014. The Plan is developed within the framework of the AMREF Strategy 2007-2017 and refocuses health priorities on improvement of women and children’s health based on three health systems building blocks: Human Resources for Health, Community Systems Strengthening and Health Management Information Systems, as a foundation. There is a reinforced emphasis on advocacy, research and documentation. The Plan recognises the importance of partnerships at all levels. It seeks to strengthen AMREF’s role as a leading African health development organisation through its refocused health priorities, and by anticipating the global donor scenario and increasingly competitive environment. It also addresses the need for aligning the management of AMREF globally around shared priorities.
Participants discussed the Business Plan, gave comments and made suggestions for how to improve it. At the end of the half-day forum, Dr Guerma expressed her gratitude for their participation. “I want to thank you all for attending this forum and contributing your ideas to make AMREF more effective as it strives to function and serve the communities better. Based on your ideas and recommendations, the Business Plan will be improved upon accordingly and be made richer,” said Dr Guerma.
“It was great to be at AMREF with other stakeholders. It was a brave and brilliant initiative by AMREF and I know those who attended appreciated your reaching out to them.” – Rene Kiamba, Manager, Sub-Saharan Africa Corporate Contribution and Giving, Johnson&Johnson.
