• What? WB approved loan
• Who? West Bengal Health System Reform Program
• Purpose: Healthcare services for people over 30 years
• Loan Amount: USD 286 Mn
• Loan Tenure:16.5 years with grace period – 3 years
• Financing Arm: International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
• Health Indicators: IMR – 19 (2018 to 2020), TFR – 1.64 (2019), Life expectancy – 72 yrs
• Challenge: Adolescent Pregnancy – 16%, MMR – 103
• Focus Districts: Purulia, Birbhum, Murshidabad, Maldah and Uttar Dinajpur
• Objective: Improve quality of life and life expectancy through equitable healthcare access

Key Highlights:
Objective: The WB approved WBHSRP will support delivery of personalized healthcare services across the state for people over 30 years.

• It provides digital tracking of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as hypertension and diabetes.

Loan Terms: The International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) approved a loan  with a maturity of 16.5 years, including a grace period of 3 years. 
Health Indicators: West Bengal has made sustainable health gains in the past 20 years, with Infant Mortality Rates (IMR) declining from 32 deaths per 1000 births in 2018 to 2012 to 19 deaths in 2018 to 2020.

• Also, the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) stood at 1.64 births per woman in 2019, among the lowest in the country.
• Life expectancy in the state has reached 72 years, above the national average.

Challenge: Despite the improvements, West Bengal has the second-highest rate of adolescent pregnancies in India at 16%, contributing to a Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) of 103 deaths per 1,00,000 live births in 2018.
GBV: The Program will also support strengthening gender-based violence (GBV) services including targeted interventions for boys, married adolescents, and healthcare providers.
Five Districts: The programme will enhance access to quality healthcare services and reduce inequities in maternal and adolescent health in the districts of Purulia, Birbhum, Murshidabad, Maldah and Uttar Dinajpur.
About World Bank (WB)
President– Ajay Banga
Headquarters-Washington, DC, the United States of America (USA)
Established-1944