NPI EXPAND works closely with local partners to design technical support programs that fit the needs of the country, the priorities of their health programs, and their organizational capacity. In some cases, NPI EXPAND will draw on the global expertise of Palladium staff to provide technical support, and in other cases, NPI EXPAND will support its local partners to procure specialized support available locally. Priority is given to finding local solutions, particularly when there is need for ongoing support beyond NPI EXPAND’s involvement with the local organization. Our priority areas for technical support are described below.

Family Planning

Access to quality family planning products, services and information is a significant problem in many parts of the world. Millions of women have an unmet need for contraception that cannot always be met through government clinics. This affects women’s health and the ability of women and their partners to plan their families and space their births as they wish. NPI EXPAND works with local non-governmental organizations to strengthen their family planning and reproductive health programs to address these needs through the following strategies:

  • Expanded social marketing of contraceptives to increase access through private sector challenges and provide information so women can make an informed choice about the best method for their needs;
  • Social and behavior change communications targeted to communities with high levels of unmet need so women and couples better understand the advantages of family planning and to dispel myths and rumors that may constitute a barrier to better health;
  • Improved quality of clinic services in fixed clinics and mobile clinics through provider training, improved infection prevention, improved referral systems and supportive supervision.
  • Improved counselling by private sector providers to ensure that providers can explain the full range of contraceptive options available for birth spacing while respecting the confidentiality and the needs of their clients;
  • Advocacy to the government and other stakeholders in support of family planning services and favorable policies that ensure quality of products and services and increased access;
  • Organizational capacity building and sustainability planning to ensure that local organizations can continue to play a significant role in the provision of family planning products and services well into the future without having to rely on short term donor funding.
  • Support organizational networking and partnering so local organizations working in family planning can learn from each other and identify possible operational partnerships.

Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health

Improving the well-being of mothers, newborns, infants, and children is an important public health goal for USAID and its implementing partners. Far too many women, newborns and children worldwide have little or no access to quality health services, clean water, adequate sanitation and nutrition. Millions of pregnant women, new mothers, newborns and children experience severe illness or death each year, largely from preventable or treatable causes.[1] The U.S. has placed a higher priority on MNCH and adopted “ending preventable child and maternal deaths” as one of its three main global health goals.[2]

Maternal, infant and child mortality and morbidity rates are still a significant problem in many developing countries. NPI EXPAND will work with local non-governmental organizations to improve and strengthen their MNCH programs in order to address these deficiencies. These strategies can include:

  • promote and strengthen respectful care strategies;
  • improve and expand access to quality antenatal and post-natal care;
  • improve access and uptake of immunizations
  • include skilled care at birth and emergency obstetric care.
  • treating severe newborn infections
  • increased use of simple, low-cost interventions, such as breastfeeding, keeping newborns warm and dry,
  • scaling-up use of oral rehydration therapy (ORT) with zinc
  • increased use of insecticide-treated mosquito nets for children under five and pregnant women
  • increase use of sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine for pregnant women to prevent malaria
  • improved access to and use of clean water, sanitation, and hygiene practices like handwashing;
  • improved nutrition;
  • treatment of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs).
  • increasing access to services, including through community-based clinics[3]
  • community mobilization, behavior change communication and social marketing to promote the use of the products and services above

[1] U.N. Interagency Group on Child Mortality Estimates (IGME), Levels and Trends in Child Mortality Report 2019, 2019; WHO, Trends in maternal mortality: 1990 to 2017, 2019.
[2] https://www.kff.org/global-health-policy/fact-sheet/the-u-s-government-and-global-maternal-and-child-health/
[3] Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health, Strategic Framework 2012-2015, November 2011.

COVID-19 Mitigation

The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic presents new challenges to already strained health systems worldwide. To effectively respond to COVID-19 and mitigate its harmful impacts, countries require enhanced participation of capable local partners. The NPI EXPAND activity supports countries to engage local partners, such as community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, and private sector organizations, to leverage community structures and provide innovative and scalable solutions to strengthen emergency preparedness and response. Strengthening engagement of local organizations will help to build trust in and foster sustainable and resilient health systems that can prevent the spread of COVID-19 and prepare for future threats.

NPI EXPAND supports local partners to engage in the COVID-19 response by using a combination of grant-making and targeted capacity development. Our grantees are empowering communities to strengthen risk communication and community engagement, surveillance, infection prevention and control, coordination and planning, and mitigation of second order impacts related to COVID-19. The grants and capacity development focus on enabling local organizations to expand the reach of innovative and locally relevant interventions that bolster national and community-based emergency response efforts, reaching more people with lifesaving information, supplies, equipment, and services.