Fiscal Space for Health in the Era of COVID-19: Constraints and Choices in Preserving Gains for Indonesia and the Philippines
July 27, 2020, 9:00 pm EDT
July 28, 2020, 8:00 am, Jakarta | 9:00 am, Manila
The recent practice of fiscal space analysis emphasizes the rise in government revenues linked to economic growth and tax collection effort, leading to overall increase in government budgets, as being more important to drive public sector health spending. Fiscal space thinking also highlights the need for increased efficiency in public financial management systems and in service delivery.
However, since COVID-19, given the significant declines in economic activity and tax revenues and pressure on government planned spending, the debate on whether health should be re-prioritized in government budgets with explicit allocations and earmarks is re-emerging. Can two emerging economies with major ongoing health sector reforms, Indonesia and the Philippines, carry their health system momentum, given these constraints? What choices can they make to increase fiscal space for health and to meet national goals?
This webinar features recent analyses of fiscal space for health conducted by the USAID’s ProtectHealth project in the Philippines (with the Department of Health) and the Health Policy Plus project in Indonesia (with the Ministry of Planning),and will include discussants from both countries’ ministries of finance and an invited audience from ministries of health and planning.
Listen as our speakers highlight the current fiscal constraints, government budgetary responses to the COVID-19 crunch on revenues, and possible avenues through which additional financing could be raised.
