Launched in 2022 as a collaborative partnership with Community Health Impact Coalition and Last Mile Health, AFF is FAH’s “big and bold” idea towards closing the annual $4.4 billion community health financing gap. By 2030, AFF will scale community health systems in 10 African countries by institutionalizing 200,000 community health workers and improving healthcare outcomes for 100 million people. Its first fund, the AFF Catalytic Fund, hosted by the Global Fund and supported by the Johnson & Johnson Foundation and the Skoll Foundation, will deploy $100 million. The aim is to create a model that can be replicated to provide large-scale financing and momentum for community health across the African continent. AFF advocates for CHWs as the key investment to deliver universal healthcare. Well-structured and integrated CHW programmes offer a 10:1 return on investment, but too few programmes are sufficiently supported and financed. Instead, CHWs face significant challenges due to insufficient pay and recognition of their work, lack of training and supervision, frequent stockouts of drugs and supplies, and lack of integration into the public health system. AFF brings together governments, donors, implementers and technical allies to overcome these challenges, with the aim of financing and strengthening integrated community health service delivery. FAH conceived the idea for AFF and provided its initial funding. Other partners in the initiative include: the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Presidential Center for Women and Development, the Community Health Impact Coalition and Last Mile Health. Implementation partners include BRAC, GAIA Global Health, Integrate Health, LivingGoods, Lwala Community Alliance, mothers2mothers, Muso, TIP Global Health, D-Tree and VillageReach. In 2016, the Liberian government launched the National Community Health Assistant Program […] With proper supervision, adequate salaries and enough supplies to reach every household in their communities, CHWs were empowered to provide standardized, integrated primary healthcare services. The results speak for themselves. Liberia’s 4,000 CHWs now deliver nearly 50% of all reported malaria treatments for children under five and consistently provide access to health services, even during the COVID-19 pandemic […] The experience of these countries, as well as others, shows that supporting CHWs and integrating them into national health systems can save lives and create livelihoods. It should serve as a guide for expanding community health services across the continent. Her Excellency President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Jean Kaseya7CASE STORY Africa Frontline First (AFF) 7. Sirleaf, E. J. and J .Kaseya. (2024). Strengthening Africa’s Community Health Programs. Project Syndicate. https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/ africa-community-health-programs-must-be-coordinated-integrated-by-ellen-j-sirleaf-and-jean-kaseya-2024-02. The Future is Collective: Case Studies of Collective Social Innovation 26

The Future is Collective Case Studies of Collective Social Innovation 2025