Honduras is one of the poorest and least developed countries in Latin America, with nearly two-thirds of its population living in poverty. The fertility, infant mortality, and maternal mortality rates are considered high, and much of the country’s economic future is resting on receiving relief from foreign debt. However, there are many signs of encouragement. The country has had more than 25 years of stable democratic governance. Increased foreign investment and large awards from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) have also promised a brighter future with a dramatic increase in available resources.

EXPERIENCE IN COUNTRY

• Support to the Honduras Global Fund Project
• Virtual Leadership Development Program (VLDP) for Contraceptive Commodity Security Committees (CCS) in Latin America 
• Business Planning for Health (BPH) Program for Municipalities in Latin America 

Support to the Honduras Global Fund Project

The Management Dashboard, an electronic tool which links financial, managerial, and performance data into a single presentation to enable effective Country Coordination Mechanism (CCM) oversight, was initially developed by LMS for the Global Fund (GF) project in Nicaragua (and which has since been adapted and applied by LMS with the IPPF affiliate, CIES, in Bolivia). Effective monitoring and evaluation has been a challenge in the Honduras GF program. In response, LMS introduced this strategic monitoring and evaluation tool for use by the Honduran CCM. With support from LMS, the Honduras GF program successfully passed from Phase I to Phase II. Following this assistance, USAID/Honduras requested continued technical assistance from LMS to the CCM to prepare for the Launch of the Local Technical Assistance Team (ULAT). As part of the ULAT project, LMS is providing management support to Grant Thornton International, the subcontractor of the CCM, to achieve the following deliverables: documentation of acceptance and rejection letters for sub-grantees, written method of staff payment process and procedures, an office procedures manual including suggestions for a simple process to record staff’s working hours on a biweekly basis, a process for performance planning and evaluation for all hired staff, and a process for requesting supplies.

Virtual Leadership Development Program (VLDP) for Contraceptive Commodity Security Committees (CCS) in Latin America

This VLDP was delivered by LMS from February to June, 2007 for CCS from four countries: Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, and Paraguay. The CCS are national entities composed of high-level functionaries from the MOH, the social security system, local NGOs, and international partners. Their purpose is to guarantee the availability of contraceptives in their countries. A total of 93 people participated in 12 teams: two teams from the Dominican Republic, three from Honduras (representing the NGO ASHONPLAFA, the Ministry of Health, and the Social Security System), three from El Salvador, and four from Paraguay. As in all VLDPs, the teams selected a real organizational challenge and developed an action plan to achieve their desired results. In this case, all the teams worked on the common challenge of assuring the supply of contraceptive commodities and increasing access to family planning.

Business Planning for Health (BPH) Program for Municipalities in Latin America/Caribbean

The BPH was developed to enable institutions, including governments, to identify their needs, organize themselves, and develop compelling business plans to present to donors. Funding agencies in general are far more willing to invest in something when they can see what social return will result. Four municipal teams from Honduras completed the program from March to September, 2006. LMS hosted closing ceremonies in Tegucigalpa in September 2006 where representatives from USAID/Honduras spoke of the importance of the program. They noted that the BPH allows the participating municipalities to identify a critical gap in services and create a plan to address the identified need, including a marketing plan; and define the composition of the design and implementation teams, the financial requirements, and the indicators of success. Business plan topics included: building and equipping a local maternal health clinic; improving a sanitation program; and financing a municipal development fund to support community-level social sector activities. PROCOSI/Bolivia, LMS’ BPH partner in the region, provided technical assistance to teams.