How do major health donors prepare for country exits?
This blog was first published in Brookings Future Development Blog. The authors, Kaci Kennedy McDade, Osondu Ogbuoji, Marco Schäferhoff, and Gavin Yamey have authored a review “Health aid in transition: a review of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria." Many development donors use country income levels—typically gross national income per capita—to ensure that their support for health systems in the developing world goes to countries with the greatest need. As a result, donors often reduce support when countries graduate from low- to middle-income status. While this graduation reflects advancement in economic development and is cause for celebration, transitions away from donor assistance for health typically bring significant challenges for middle-income countries. The evidence also appears to indicate that countries that are expected to graduate from multilateral health assistance…