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Karachi

For the first time in Pakistan, officials of the provincial government working on the district and provincial levels will be able to enrol in a graduate program on health policy and management as part of an initiative to build capacity to ensure better delivery of services.

For this the Sindh government on Monday signed an agreement with the Aga Khan University and John Snow Inc, as part of the strengthening health systems component of the USAID’s maternal and child health program.

Under the agreement, around 95 senior and mid-level officials of the health department will have the opportunity to get a graduate degree in health policy and management without taking a leave of absence. Classes will take place every weekend and will include both theory and practical components.

“The public health sector desperately needs some qualitative and quantitative changes and the health policy and management training being offered by Aga Khan University will help being about the difference,” said Iftikhar Shallwani, the Sindh health secretary, while speaking on the occasion.

He said core capacities of government managers will be built in policy analysis, strategic operational planning, organisational and quality management, human resources, program monitoring and health reforms.

He said participants of the graduate program will be drawn from the health secretariat, director generals’ offices, health development sector and district education officers. He said this will be the first time government managers will be able to study while continuing with their work.

According to the dean of Aga Khan Medical College, Dr Farhat Abbas, the health policy management training program will be the first in Pakistan to target both policy and institutional management and it will be specialised to focus on public health systems as opposed to the more generic masters’ degree in public health offered by most universities.

The program director Dr Shehla

Zaidi, said the training program provided an opportunity for retaining experienced staff on key posts who can quickly apply the skills taught to them as opposed to traditional initiatives which involved a long leave of absence, after which people seldom rejoined work and there were uncertain chances of appointment to strategic posts.

She said the program will train health professionals in systems planning, implementation and research.