IFC is assisting the government of Uzbekistan in harnessing private capital and expertise to modernize the country’s healthcare sector, to provide more patients with access to quality, affordable health services.

IFC signed an agreement today with the government of Uzbekistan to structure a public-private partnership (PPP) to construct, operate and maintain new multispecialty hospitals in the Samarkand, Jizzakh and Kashkadaria regions.

The country’s aging hospital network was designed to treat single diseases, such as cancer, cardiology, or dermatology, at separate clinics instead of providing holistic care. That has resulted in larger, more costly hospitals unable to treat patients with complex conditions.

The new project will enable specialized secondary and tertiary healthcare to be delivered in a modern, efficient, and patient-centric setting, with multi-specialties offered at the same facility – supporting government efforts to lower expenditure on secondary and tertiary care.

“The government is committed to delivering efficient, affordable, and high-quality public health services to the people of Uzbekistan,” said Amrillo Inoyatov, Uzbekistan’s Minister of Health. “By working with a private partner, we can deliver best-practice hospital designs that will improve clinical workflows, provide patients with more holistic care, and ensure the construction of quality, modern health infrastructure.”

The new PPP builds on the success of the country’s first healthcare PPP, which IFC also helped structure, and which currently provides dialysis treatment to more than 1,000 patients annually.

“Access to affordable, quality health care is essential to social and economic development, and IFC is pleased to support the Uzbekistan government in identifying private sector solutions to achieve critical public health goals and improve lives,” said Linda Rudo Munyengeterwa, Director of IFC’s PPP Transaction Advisory and Corporate Finance. “This PPP will not only introduce best practices in the healthcare system but is also expected to provide improved access for patients and better value for money for the government.”

IFC is also helping the government structure a number of additional healthcare PPPs, including for the construction of a new hospital in the Fergana region; a new public radiotherapy service to help cancer patients, including those from socially disadvantaged groups; and an imaging diagnostic PPP to boost access to quality diagnostics services.