Bahamas becomes first Caricom country to join Alliance for Primary Health Care

WASHINGTON, United States (CMC)–The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) on Friday welcomed The Bahamas as the latest member to join the Alliance for Primary Health Care (PHC) in the Americas. The PHC is a regional initiative led by PAHO, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the World Bank and supports countries in strengthening primary health care and transforming health systems through coordinated investment, innovation, and technical cooperation. PAHO said that the Caribbean Community (Caricom) country’s accession was formalised during a hybrid signing ceremony held in Nassau, with representatives of the government, PAHO, the IDB, and the World Bank participating in person and virtually.

PAHO said the partnership will support The Bahamas in strengthening its health system by aligning investments, technical cooperation, and innovation around national priorities. As part of its accession, The Bahamas established a Consultative Mechanism for Primary Health Care, a strategic platform led by the Ministry of Health and Wellness that will bring together national authorities and the Alliance partners to coordinate investments, technical cooperation, and innovation around the country’s health priorities. “The Bahamas is pleased to join the Alliance for Primary Health Care in the Americas and welcomes this important partnership.

For us, partnership in the Alliance is not about adding another country to a regional network, it is about adding meaningful impact where it matters most – in the lives of our people,” said Health and Wellness MInister, Michael Darville. “Through this Alliance, we envisaged that technical expertise, investment and innovation would be better aligned with our national priorities; support for the implementation of The Bahamas National Health Strategy; and an accelerated transformation of the country’s health system through a primary health care approach.” The mechanism will serve as a permanent forum for policy dialogue and technical collaboration, helping coordinate investments and technical cooperation with national priorities, coordinate ongoing and future initiatives, and advance implementation of The Bahamas National Health Strategy. “The Bahamas is the first Caricom member state to join the Alliance, marking a new chapter for the initiative and creating an important opportunity to extend its benefits across the Caribbean,” …