April

The GFF CSOs advocates should strongly call for increased engagement and participation of the local communities in addressing challenges in delivering RMNCAH-N. Accountability should be enhanced across the entire ecosystem identifying and holding the different stakeholders (e.g., government, CSOs, Faith-based institutions, citizens, youth, Donors) to account for the unique
roles that they play. The GFF should also push governments to stick to the GFF conditions ofadditionality” in order to unlock additional funds to improve health outcomes for women, children and adolescents. The GFF should advocate for the increased participation of CSOs and youth given that they are the linkage between the GFF and the local communities. Increased
knowledge of the existing GFF framework will also enable a better inclusion of community voices and representation by the CSOs and the youth. Encourage participation by other donor agencies and the private sector to support the RMNCAH-N initiatives. This will enable initiatives developed that are well suited to address the challenges facing the local communities.

The GFF should push for governments to share critical information across the different partners enhancing joint accountability. Increase the community engagement in addressing the challenges faced in the RMNCAH-N initiatives. The GFF should explore opportunities to increase the participation of private sector and other donor agencies in the GFF framework. This will drive the additional growth of the funds intended to invest in RMNCAH-N initiatives in countries.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a significant death toll as well as serious health and economic problems. This impact has been felt across all demographics, prompting stakeholders to realign their priorities. The COVID-19 pandemic has altered how healthcare is managed, affecting how the government, individuals, and stakeholders approach healthcare. COVID-19
has also resulted in greater integration of hospital IT systems. The government's priorities have shifted to suit the management of COVID-19from diagnostics to treatment. The pandemic exacerbated existing inadequacies and gaps in health-care systems. Health services were overburdened, with the focus moving to the fight against COVID-19, which was often carried
out in severely understaffed and under-resourced institutions.

Some of the progress made to preserve women's and children's health, such as access to free maternal deliveries and restricted funding for family planning alternatives, was set aside by the government. Governments must evaluate shifting financial priorities and put a mechanism in place to avoid moving funds meant for essential health services such as RMNCAH-N. COVID-19 impacted all agencies (governments, donors, CSOs, and local communities) involved in supporting RMNCAH-N projects, resulting in a redirection of resources and emphasis areas away from RMNCAH-N programs and toward COVID-19 reaction. Some of the government's COVID-19 mitigation measures disrupted health services for mothers, Adolescent girls and young women, and children. Pregnant mothers had limited access to health care due to a night curfew. Governments also reduced financing for family planning programs, reproductive health clinics, and child health services in order to support the important health services identified by COVID-19 that affect young women, children, and adolescents.

Pregnancies among teenagers and young women have increased. Lockdowns and stay-at-home restrictions imposed by the government restricted people's travels away from their houses. Unfortunately, adolescent’s girls and young women were not safe at home as witnessed by an increase in teenage pregnancies and increased cases of Gender based violence.

These gains that have been made overtime have been reversed and are still at a great risk of being further reversed. To meet the massive demands on health care delivery brought on by the pandemic, telehealth was fast-tracked last year, with patients being seen and diagnosed by health practitioners via virtual portals. In a fast-evolving crisis like COVID-19, responders and decision-makers needed timely data about the spread of the disease in order to protect the communities. Innovative use of digital solutions has been identified as a safe and effective way to reach people.