Sustainable long-term health financing for national safe blood systems: Learnings from a three-tier technical assistance approach in Malawi, Liberia and Rwanda

This brief describes how national blood transfusion services (NBTSs) in Liberia, Malawi and Rwanda have demonstrated a viable approach to enhancing health system responsiveness to the sustainable financing needs of national safe blood systems — strengthening cross-sectoral cooperation across health programs and actors and among health and financing authorities and leveraging market-based strategies to viably deliver essential public health services. It showcases how the three countries pursued more health system resources for sustainable NBTS operations, how blood system financing needs can be effectively integrated into routine health sector planning and budgeting processes, and how NBTSs can generate own funding from other internal and external sources to complement health system funds.