Australia Indonesia Partnership for Health Systems Strengthening

Tetra Tech helped improve access to and quality of health services in Indonesia through health system strengthening.

Roughly one-third of Indonesia’s population lives in poverty, surviving on incomes that are equivalent to less than USD$22.63 per month. Indonesia’s poor and near-poor are covered by the state-funded health coverage program, Jamkesmas; however, more than 160 million people do not have accessible health care.

The Government of Australia supported the Government of Indonesia through the Australia Indonesia Partnership for Health System Strengthening (AIPHSS), implemented by Tetra Tech. AIPHSS aimed to provide Indonesia with a stronger, more accessible health care system. The program focused on strengthening the health system through:

  • Effective national health insurance policy, rules, and regulations implementation
  • Minimum service standards adherence at all levels of health service delivery
  • Local health service center accreditation
  • Equitable health resources allocation at all levels of government
  • Good governance and supervision practice implementation at all levels of government

Our team provided program management and technical support to Indonesia’s Ministry of Health to strengthen human resources, health financing, and health care delivery systems while supporting legislative change. The program worked across the health system, providing an opportunity for the Indonesian and Australian governments to work in partnership and address policy and implementation issues at national and subnational levels. AIPHSS also operated in two provinces and eight districts, testing national policies, regulations, guidelines, and tools at a local level and providing insight into the relationships between national policy changes, policy implementation, and the quality and responsiveness of health services at the primary care level.

AIPHSS contributed significantly to a stronger Indonesian health system. The program supported legislative and regulatory reform at the national, provincial, and district levels of government; developed 41 pieces of health system policies and regulations; and supported the implementation of effective national health insurance policy, rules, and regulations. The team also conducted a comprehensive health sector review and assisted in updating and legislative adoption of Minimum Service Standards, including accreditation of and subsequent improvement in primary health care centers. AIPHSS also improved qualifications via distance learning offered to nurses and midwives in remote areas. The distance learning initiative helped to improve district-based health services, advance health workers’ qualifications, and ensure continual care in remote and rural locations.