WASHINGTON, D.C. — Results for Development (R4D) today welcomed Sarbani Chakraborty, Ph.D., M.P.H., as a senior program director and mixed health systems practice lead.
Dr. Chakraborty will oversee mixed health system program design and implementation at R4D — including the Frontier Health Markets Global Technical Assistance program — with the goal of optimizing public-private engagement within health systems to equitably deliver high-quality health care for all. She will collaborate closely with other R4D practice areas such as health financing and market shaping.
“I am thrilled to welcome Dr. Chakraborty to R4D,” said Tanya Jones, managing director at R4D. “Dr. Chakraborty’s extensive career as a global leader in mixed health systems will enable us to build on R4D’s deep engagement in this field. Throughout her career, Dr. Chakraborty has been a longtime champion of taking a systems approach and working with public and private sector actors to drive sustainable change and equitable health outcomes. I’m confident she will continue to push our thinking on how to improve mixed health systems around the world.”
Since it was founded in 2008, R4D has helped build the global evidence base on how to strengthen mixed health systems — beginning with an influential 2009 report, Public Stewardship of Private Providers in Mixed Health Systems, authored by Gina Lagomarsino, R4D’s president and CEO, and others. More recently, R4D implemented the Strengthening Mixed Health Systems project, which supported governments and private sector actors in India and Kenya to demonstrate and document practical and actionable processes for integrating quality private maternity care into government-stewarded health systems. Now, as the technical co-lead for the Frontier Health Markets Global Technical Assistance program — a 5-year USAID-funded initiative, valued at up to $135 million — R4D will build upon this past work to increase private sector engagement in countries where USAID currently supports family planning and other health activities to address key market challenges.
Dr. Chakraborty is a natural fit to lead this work. Throughout her career, she has focused on supporting low- and middle-income countries to diagnose and address gaps in access to quality health care with the objective of driving equitable health outcomes. She has championed a systems approach and working with public and private sector actors, working with a variety of organizations — from multilaterals to governments, to the private sector, and public-private partnerships. This has given her an expanded understanding of the perspectives of multiple stakeholders and how to bring them together to drive sustainable health systems to change.
“I am honored to join R4D to lead the mixed health systems practice,” said Dr. Chakraborty. “R4D has been a pioneer in shaping our understanding of mixed health systems, and we have learned a lot about how these systems work or do not work. It is now time to accelerate efforts to bring this evidence and knowledge to the forefront and support countries in building strong mixed health systems to achieve their health system goals. I believe R4D´s vision and mission are well suited to drive this change and I am excited to be part of this journey.”
Before R4D, Dr. Chakraborty spent 17 years with the World Bank, where she primarily worked on health sector projects in Europe and Central Asia, and the East Asia and Pacific Region. She spent seven years working with innovative pharmaceutical companies, including Merck KgAA/EMD Serono and Roche, in Germany and Switzerland, where she led topics such as global health, access strategies for low- and middle-income countries, and public-private partnerships. She designed major platforms such as Healthy Women, Healthy Economies, and Access Accelerated. Most recently she has been working in Geneva with the Global Fund and WHO.
Dr. Chakraborty holds a doctorate in health policy and management from Johns Hopkins University, a master’s degree in health planning and financing from the London School of Economics, and a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and economics from Mount Holyoke College. She is a native speaker of English and Bengali, and speaks German and basic French, and Turkish.
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About Results for Development
Results for Development (R4D) is a leading non-profit global development partner. We collaborate with change agents — government officials, civil society leaders, and social innovators — supporting them as they navigate complex change processes to achieve large-scale, equitable outcomes in health, education, and nutrition. We work with country leaders to diagnose challenges, co-create, innovate and implement solutions built on evidence and diverse stakeholder input, and engage in learning to adapt, iterate and improve. We also strengthen global, regional and country ecosystems to support country leaders with expertise, evidence, and innovations. R4D helps country leaders solve their immediate challenges today, while also strengthening systems and institutions to address tomorrow’s challenges. And we share what we learn so others around the world can achieve results for development too. www.R4D.org
