Remarks by USAID India Mission Director George Deikun at the Launch of the "Vistaar" Project in Jharkhand, Ranchi

January 29, 2007

It is a pleasure to be here once again in Jharkhand and to have the opportunity to launch Vistaar - a major new health initiative supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development. I am honored that we are joined by such a distinguished group for this occasion.

I want to extend a special thanks to Mr. Madhu Koda, Chief Minister of Jharkhand for his continued leadership and support. I also would like to thank Mr. Lal Hemendra Pratap Dehati, Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Mr. N.N. Pandey, Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Ms. Nidhi Khare, Special Secretary, Health, Government of Jharkhand for participating today and for your support and partnership.

My first visit to Jharkhand – almost a year and a half ago - was a whirlwind of activity and very rewarding. Visiting about six of twenty-two districts I learned about many of our joint efforts with dedicated state and local partners. I met a range of people – several ministers of the State Government, tribal and corporate leaders, and other representatives of civil society organizations. I visited programs in both rural and urban areas. At that time, I inaugurated the State Fiscal Analysis Cell. I saw firsthand how the U.S. partnership with Jharkhand is helping to increase access to family healthcare, raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and create education opportunities for those in need.

I would also like to acknowledge the active support and enthusiasm for health-related issues from the government and political leadership in Jharkhand. Chief Minister Koda chairs the “State Rural Health Mission” and Chief Secretary Mandal heads the “Jharkhand Health Society.” This represents commitment to these important issues at the highest levels. We also appreciate the state’s support of the health sector infrastructure reforms through the additional resources of the 12th finance commission.

I applaud the State’s goal of improving the management of the health sector so as to provide quality healthcare to the last village, the last family, and the last person in Jharkhand. The objectives of improving access and availability of services, developing community ownership, ensuring quality, strengthening systems and promoting public-private partnership and gender sensitivity in health care are in step with the needs of Jharkhand and the National Rural Health Mission.

Recently, I understand that community health insurance for people in Jharkhand living below the poverty line was announced under the ‘Sarv Swasthya Mission’ which is collaborating with Tata and other corporate players. That mission and the community health volunteer program, the ‘Sahiyya roll out,’ are remarkable examples of how the drive and dynamism of the Jharkhand leadership is paying off and helping to provide basic services to those who need them most.

The State’s emphasis on strengthening institutional structures such as the Jharkhand Health Society is paying off. The recent Joint Review Mission of Reproductive and Child Health Mission II (RCH II) ranked Jharkhand as the fourth best state among the high focus states. The third National Family Health Survey (NFHS 3) also provides some evidence of the recent achievements. The state level data on key outcome indicators shows that contraceptive use has increased from 25% (during NFHS 2) to 31%. Institutional ante-natal care has increased from 25% during NFHS 2 to 36%. Routine immunization is dramatically improving, moving from less than 10% to 36%. I congratulate the Government of Jharkhand for these impressive achievements.

However, there are serious challenges that remain. An increased focus on nutritional interventions for women and young children and the strengthening of health systems are “needs of the hour.”

The area that needs special attention is childhood malnutrition which stands at 60%. This is the highest in all of India. This is a great challenge, yet at the same time it represents an opportunity to improve the lives and health and nutrition of children. With Vistaar, the program we are launching here today, we hope to work with all of you to change this trend for the better.

Working with our partners we aim to help Jharkhand achieve key objectives of the National Rural Health Mission, including reducing childhood malnutrition, through improving maternal, neonatal and child health and nutrition..

We at USAID value our partnership with Jharkhand which stretches across a number of sectors including health, education, and fiscal reform. We see Vistaar as the next important step in our partnership. We believe that by working closely with all of our partners in Jharkhand – with “team Jharkhand” – we can together realize the vision of a healthy and prosperous Jharkhand in the future.

Thank you.