Contacts: In Santo Domingo: Alejandra De La Paz (809) 566-6815 adelapaz@worldbank.org In Washington: Gabriela Aguilar (202) 473-6768 gaguilar2@worldbank.org WASHINGTON, 17 September 2009 –The World Bank Board of Directors approved today US$30.5 million for the Second Phase of the Health Sector Reform Project (PARSS2), and US$10 million additional financing for the existing Social Protection Project, for a total of US$40.5 million. Through the new loan of US$30.5 million for the second phase of the Health Sector Reform Project (PARSS2), the World Bank joins the efforts with the Dominican Government to improve the quality of basic services, with emphasis on the lower income population, the quality of public expenditures and the capacity of health care workers to respond to medical care emergencies. The PARSS2 is the second in a series of three projects that the World Bank will finance for the health sector, the first phase of which ends in December of this year. PARSS2, which is the second phase, aims to improve basic health services and will introduce new mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the progress made toward the project’s goals. PARSS2, which will last for five years, supports national health sector strategies lead by the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (Secretaría de Estado de Salud Pública y Asistencia Social - SESPAS), and National Health Insurance (Seguro Nacional de Salud - SENASA), along with other institutions of the sector. The new project also aims to improve the transparency and accountability of the sector and promotes greater efficiency in the management of public expenditures in health. “Through these new operations the World Bank will continue to support the government’s efforts to improve coverage, selection, and concentration of the social protection public programs, which aim to provide a more inclusive, efficient and transparent system for all Dominicans, and, in particular for the poorest,” said Roby Senderowitsh, World Bank Country Manager for the Dominican Republic.
PARSS2 will enhance the D.R.’s capacity to respond to national emergencies and consolidate strategic purchases of health services and materials, especially those which aim to improve access to essential medication and basic health care. The new project will rely on the active participation of SESPAS, SENASA, the Program for Essential Medication/Logistical Support Center (Programa de Medicamentos Esenciales/Central de Apoyo Logístico - PROMESE/CAL) and the Executive Commission for the Reform of the Health Sector. The project will also include the creation of a unit for implementation of projects in SESPAS.
New financing provides additional support for poverty reduction
On the other hand, the Additional Financing for the Social Protection Project in the amount of US$10 million is part of the Government’s efforts to reduce poverty and attain a higher degree of social equality.
The original project approved by the Board of Directors in August 2007 in the amount US$19.4 million, , and approved by the Dominican Congress in November 2008, will continue its objective of improving coverage, concentration, selection and effectiveness of the social protection programs by the Dominican Government. This objective is met via the provision of identity documents for poor Dominicans, the institutional strengthening of the mechanisms for concentration, and the improvement of the monitoring and evaluation of the social programs. The entity responsible for the coordination and execution of the Social Protection Project, which includes this Additional Financing, is the Cabinet for the Coordination of social Policies of the Dominican Republic (Social Cabinet) under the Vice-Presidency of the Republic. Prepared in close collaboration with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the additional financing will be utilized by the Social Cabinet for the expansion of activities already considered, such as:
Ÿ Carrying out a new census in order to update the data base of the System for Information and Sole Registration of Beneficiaries (Sistema de Información y Registro Único de Beneficiarios - SIUBEN)
Ÿ Digitalizing and updating the poverty map of 13 areas of the country
Ÿ Contracting qualified personnel for the process of providing national identity documents.
Further, the new amount will include new activities towards institutional strengthening and the re-design of the Cash Conditional Transfers Program Solidaridad – which had not been included in the initial Loan for the project.
Begun by the Government at the beginning of 2009, the re-design of the Cash Conditional Transfers Program Solidaridad targets improvements in different spheres, including, among others: greater emphasis on investments in health, nutrition and education for poor homes; better coordination with the services of Health and Education at a national and local levels; greater quality of service to beneficiaries; greater efficiency via the de-concentration of the Program at the local level; and greater impact capacity.
Specifically, the Additional Financing of the World Bank would respond to this recent re-structuring with three principal axes. First, it will support enhancing the capacity and performance of the Solidaridad, Education and Health Services technical personnel, with the new operation rules for the Program. Second, it will support the development of an integral system of Monitoring and Evaluation, which will strengthen the capacity of the program to identify and resolve bottlenecks in the system and to improve the governance of the Program. Finally it will support the development of mechanisms to strengthen the participation of the beneficiaries and the social keeping of accounts in the Program with the objective of improving transparency and accountability in the Program. These initiatives will also produce synergy with the Health Program since an improved system of identity and registration of citizens will be utilized by the National Health Insurance (Seguro Nacional de Salud - SENASA) to determine optimally who in the population are eligible for the subsidized system. As with other loans for the country, the Health Reform Project (PARSS2) as well as the Additional Financing for Social Protection will have to be ratified by both chambers of the National Congress as a prerequisite to become effective. Both operations are national in scope and are in line with the new Country Partnership Assistance of the World Bank with the Dominican Republic 2010-2013 which was also approved today by the World Bank Board of Directors. For more information on the operations of the World Bank in the Dominican Republic, please visit on the la Web: www.worldbank.org/do - | 
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