Mozambique among 7 countries in the world that spend less in Health

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Mozambique among 7 countries in the world that spend less in Health

1:30 CAT | 14 Apr 2016

Mozambique is among the seven lowest spenders on health care per capita in the world and in 2040 will be spending only a dollar more than the threshold necessary to ensure essential care, studies released on Wednesday reveal.

The two studies, published by British medical journal The Lancet and coordinated by researcher Joseph Dieleman of the Institute for Metric and Evaluation of Health in Seattle, USA, project national spending on health and financial development aid devoted to the health sector.

The conclusion is that health financing in developing countries is facing a crisis resulting from low domestic investment and the stagnation of international aid. As a result, by 2040, six countries in sub-Saharan Africa will not reach the basic goal of 86 dollars (EUR 76) health spending per capita, the minimum necessary to ensure essential health care.

According to the study, Mozambique will by 2040 be the seventh lowest spender on health care per capita in the world, with an estimated of US$87 (77 euros) per person, just one dollar above the minimum set by London-based think tank Chatham House.

The six countries with lower per-capita health spending are all in sub-Saharan Africa. They are Somalia (US$34/EUR 30 euros per person), the Democratic Republic of Congo (US$39 / EUR 34.5), the Central African Republic (US$60 / EUR 53), Burundi (US$61 / EUR 54), Eritrea (US$62 / EUR 55) and Niger (US$70 / EUR 62).

The average spending on health among low-income countries, including Mozambique, is US$164 (EUR 145) per person, while the world average is US$2,167 (EUR 1,920).

The study also indicates that, by 2040, 40.5 percent of spending on health in Mozambique will be financed by development aid, a rate only exceeded worldwide by the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. The average in low-income countries is 11.7 percent. Countries with rates similar to Mozambique’s are Guinea-Bissau (37 percent), the Gambia (37.8 percent) and Liberia (36.5 percent).

Among the Portuguese-speaking countries, Guinea-Bissau will be the second lowest (US$126/EUR111), followed by Timor-Leste (US$174 / EUR 154), Angola (US$360/ EUR 319), San Tome and Principe (US$457 / EUR 405) and Cape Verde (US$653 / EUR 578).

Equatorial Guinea, another Community of Portuguese Language Countries country, will spend US$1,283 (EUR 1,136) per person, and Brazil US$2,989 (EUR 2,648).

Portugal will spend US$5,688 (EUR 5,039) per capita on health, below the US$9,019/EUR 7,991 average for high-income countries.

Source: Lusa