World Bank: $100 million disbursed for health sector reform program in Jordan
Amman5 min read
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A recent World Bank report showed the disbursement of $100.65 million out of a total funding of $400 million for the health sector reform program in Jordan, which aims to improve the efficiency of public spending on health and the quality of primary health care services.
According to the program's implementation and results status report, the total funding of $400 million was distributed as $349 million from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and $51 million from a trust fund, while a total of $100.65 million was disbursed, including $87.9 million from the Bank's funding and $12.75 million from the fund, leaving $299.35 million unspent, without any cancellation of funding amounts.
The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors approved the program on June 12, 2026, and it came into effect on July 8, to continue until June 30, 2031. The Bank classified the progress towards achieving the program's development goal as 'satisfactory' and the overall progress in implementation at the same level.
The report said that the program is still in the early stages of implementation, and the current work is focused on completing the implementation arrangements, operational readiness, and laying the necessary foundations to achieve its results. The Ministry of Health has officially involved the relevant technical departments in the program's implementation responsibilities, disbursement indicators linked to results, and the results framework.
The report recorded an acceleration in readiness activities supported by the Grant Facility for Project Preparation, including the launch of the national initiative for breast cancer screening, mobilizing key consultants to support implementation, and continuing progress in the package to enhance digital health systems and interoperability.
The program is based on two main areas of results; the first focuses on enhancing the efficiency, governance, and accountability of public health spending through improving billing and accounting systems, managing referrals digitally, and improving the targeting of health support, while the second aims to improve the quality of primary health care services through expanding screening and early detection of priority non-communicable diseases and breast cancer, and increasing access to specialized services through telemedicine.
- Key results indicators
The report indicated that new arrears in the health sector amounted to JD 113 million, and the program aims to reduce them to zero by June 2031.
In the field of primary health care, the percentage of eligible populations who underwent Type II diabetes screening was 9.7%, while the program aims to increase it to 15.5% by June 2031. The percentage of eligible women who underwent breast cancer screening was 2.2%, compared to a final target of 7%.
The program aims to train 27 hospitals affiliated with the Ministry of Health and 302 primary health care centers on the medical transfers protocol and the use of the digital medical transfers management system, in addition to establishing a unified database for beneficiaries of the health insurance fund.
It also aims to reduce the percentage of unnecessary and avoidable internal and emergency medical transfers from the Ministry of Health to facilities outside the Ministry by 80%, and reduce unnecessary and avoidable external transfers by the same percentage, in addition to identifying and registering 513.7 thousand beneficiaries of the health insurance fund using the unified national registry.
In terms of service utilization, the program aims to reach outpatient services to one million people, with a target of reaching 480,000 females among Jordanian beneficiaries.
According to the targets linked to the results, the program seeks to increase the number of adults who underwent high blood pressure screening from a baseline of 144,570 people to 1,144,570 people, and increase the number of eligible people who underwent Type II diabetes screening from 57,035 to 457,035 people.
It also aims to screen 46,000 people from high-risk groups for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, provide 119 spirometry devices in primary health care facilities affiliated with the Ministry of Health, and increase the number of eligible women who underwent breast cancer screening from 7,500 to 60,000 women.
In the field of digital health and specialized services, the program aims to provide 184.5 thousand remote radiology services and 240 thousand remote medical consultations by the end of the implementation period.
The program links part of its funding to achieving specific results indicators, including $53.1275 million to increase the number of Ministry of Health hospitals that provide comprehensive monthly spending data, $20 million to reduce unnecessary internal and emergency referrals, $60 million to reduce unnecessary external referrals, and $50 million to identify and register health insurance fund beneficiaries using the unified national registry.
The allocations linked to the indicators also include $40 million for high blood pressure screenings, $40 million for Type II diabetes screenings, $30 million for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease screenings, $35 million for breast cancer screenings, in addition to $41 million for remote radiology services and $30 million for remote medical consultations.
