Over 2.5 billion people need one or more assistive technologies (AT) such as wheelchairs, hearing aids, or digital assistive technology that support communication and cognition. However, nearly one billion are denied access, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where access can be as low as 3% for some of these products that are required for basic daily functioning.
More than half of the Georgian population in need of assistive products (AP) do not have access to all the products they require to support basic daily functioning. Although Georgia provides funding to the AT sub-program of the State Program for Social Rehabilitation and Childcare, a rapid AT assessment conducted by the World Health Organization in 2022 suggests that only 4.3% of AP currently in use are government-funded, while 75% are funded through out-of-pocket payments. With increasing demand for assistive technologies and a commitment to meet the needs of the population, the Government of Georgia has been focused on how to diversify the assistive technology market in the country in efforts to make higher quality products available in the country and optimize its current State Program to reach as many beneficiaries as possible within the given program funding envelope.
In June 2023, as part of ongoing support being provided to the GoG through the USAID-funded Health System Strengthening Accelerator, the GoG engaged with Results for Development (R4D) on two main objectives:
- To better understand the access barriers to three GoG-selected priority products offered through the State Program – wheelchairs, hearing aids and prostheses/orthoses
- To co-design strategic options with the GoG and service providers to address the identified barriers and help improve quality, supply and financing of the selected ATs
To be responsive to the needs of the GoG, R4D designed an approach that combines both market shaping and market development frameworks to understand the market structure and diagnose areas of market underperformance. Leveraging both a mix of primary and secondary data and literature, an evidence-based analysis was conducted across four key market dimensions of (i) supply; (ii) demand; (iii) regulatory and (iv) financing. A co-design workshop was then held with AT service providers in the country to help define potential solutions to address prioritized market barriers. A policy brief summarizing the findings can be found in the download link above.
Please contact Nelsha Haji for any questions or comments on this brief.
