SDG 3 – Good Health and Well-Being

KfW has been supporting its partners in developing countries for many years in preventing the spread of infectious diseases. For example, in cooperation with the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine in Hamburg, it is helping six countries of the East African Community of Nations to set up an early warning system for epidemics and pandemics. To this end, laboratory staff are being trained and supplied with tests for the new corona virus, among other things. Mobile laboratories are to follow shortly, which will enable precise diagnoses to be made quickly. On behalf of the German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), KfW also supports the development of new diagnostics, drugs and vaccines to be used in poor countries.

Despite the new, immense challenges posed by corona, the "old" health challenges remain. About 15,000 infants die every day from malaria, AIDS, tuberculosis, diarrhoea or childhood diseases. Tropical diseases such as dengue fever or sleeping sickness, which were previously difficult to treat, affect one-sixth of the world's population. The health systems of many countries cannot cope with these diseases alone.

For many years now KfW Development Bank has therefore been supporting the fight against tuberculosis and polio by financing vaccines, cold chains, supply systems and laboratories for diagnosing and controlling epidemics. In India, for example, KfW made a contribution to defeating polio there. In 2014 the World Health Organization certified the country as polio-free.

In the East African Community, too, KfW supports vaccination programmes including the associated supply chains together with the global vaccine alliance GAVI, thus helping to prevent severe respiratory and diarrhoea diseases, which are among the main causes of death among children in East Africa.

The fight against the early death of mothers and young children has been successful in recent years. According to UN figures, the mortality of children under five years of age has fallen from 9.8 million in 2000 to around 5.3 million in 2018, and maternal mortality has been halved in the past 25 years. Yet despite this progress, some 820 women worldwide continue to die every day from preventable complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Such deaths can be prevented through family planning programmes and better care and support in screening and childbirth

KfW is therefore particularly committed to reproductive health, which accounts for around 34% of all health projects supported. These include programmes that help to provide better medical care for pregnant women and mothers and thus improve security in this area. In addition, family planning is facilitated by, among other things, easier access to information and contraceptives. The new family planning projects committed in 2019 are expected to protect 7 million people from unplanned and risky pregnancies.

Awareness campaigns as an integral part of "social marketing" for family planning are often accompanied by measures that are also designed to further contain the spread of HIV-AIDS. A great deal has already been achieved in Africa.

Health systems in developing countries are often poorly equipped. Especially in rural areas, people frequently have to travel long distances to reach health stations or clinics, which in turn often lack the necessary medical equipment and specialist staff.

On behalf of the German federal government, KfW Development Bank supports the partner countries in modernising existing health care facilities and establishing new ones.

When building new hospitals KfW focuses on sustainability. Following the "Green Hospital" concept, the consumption of resources for buildings, equipment and processes is optimised. Sustainable use of the new infrastructure also includes an adequate budget, regular maintenance and sufficient and adequately qualified staff.

KfW also promotes the use of telemedicine, which is becoming increasingly important in rural regions with large distances. This will make it possible to noticeably improve care, especially in remote areas and crisis regions.