Launched in January 2024, the Healthcare and Livelihood Improvement Advocacy Project in Oromia and Somali (HaLIAPOS) tackles critical issues of healthcare, nutrition, agriculture, women’s economic empowerment, and financial inclusion in the Oromia and Somali regions through research and policy changes. It is an advocacy project that focuses on influencing policy changes to improve people’s lives. HaLIAPOS targets healthcare, nutrition, agriculture, women’s economic empowerment, and access to financial services. The project’s goal is to ensure increased use of evidence and policy analysis by decision makers. This, in turn, should lead to policies that support areas where people need help the most, such as increasing agricultural production, improving healthcare and nutrition, making financial services more accessible, and empowering women economically to transform their lives. The specific objectives of the project are: (1) to promote inclusive agricultural transformation, especially for small-scale farmers, building on recent successes in wheat production.; to expand access to essential healthcare and nutritional interventions; (3) to advocate for more regional funding directed towards agriculture and healthcare initiatives, 4) to enhance financial inclusion that leverages the growth of digital finance and mobile money services to improve access to financial services, particularly addressing any existing regional or gender disparities, and (5) to empower women by equipping them with the tools they need to improve their lives through the project’s interventions. A focus on gender equality is integrated throughout the project.
The project focuses on local solutions backed by evidence to tackle critical development issues in these regions. It promotes programs designed from the ground up, considering the specific needs of each region and informed by data-driven policies. This approach aims to empower local actors and achieve significant results. This will ultimately build a more equitable and sustainable future for the regions. The project achieves this by increasing transparency in how budgets are allocated, improving access to healthcare and nutrition services, and encouraging sustainable agricultural practices that prioritize women’s economic empowerment. Overall, the project strives to put the regions in control of their own development, ensuring long-term success by building capacity and promoting evidence-based decision-making.
Data guides advocacy efforts in strengthening regional health systems, promoting sustainable agriculture, addressing barriers to by smallholder farmers and women to access finance, and prioritize women’s economic empowerment community engagement strategy is employed to ensure that initiatives reach the intended communities. This data-driven, multi-pronged approach holds promise for a brighter future for the regions.
The project aims to create lasting data-driven policies in healthcare and nutrition, agriculture, women’s empowerment, and financial inclusion areas. It works closely with regional leaders and other pertinent government bodies to collect and analyze data to generate evidence to suggest policies based on research. Consultative workshops and trainings are held to impart people in the regions how to make policies based on evidence. The project is done in stages, and eventually the regional governments will take over the project. By doing this, the project hopes to create a lasting change in how Oromia and Somali regions make policies, so that the people who live there will have better lives.