On the Determinants of the Efficiency and Effectiveness of Sub-Saharan African Health Systems: Beyond Sector-Specific Conditions and Factors

Abstract

The paper reviews the efficiency and effectiveness of African health systems. In particular, the study computes efficiency and effectiveness scores and assesses the determinants of cross-country variations in efficiency and effectiveness. Efficiency and effectiveness scores in the health sector are found to be associated with sector-specific and broader conditions and factors. The policy implication is that improving the degree with which resources are managed within the health sector, alone, will not deliver all the expected efficiency and effectiveness gains. This should be complemented and reinforced by the implementation of a much broader agenda of boosting economy-wide productivity.

Keywords: Efficiency, Censored Models, Government Expenditures and Health

JEL Classification: C34, D61, H51