Getting a sexual and reproductive health (SRH) product approved is not the same as getting that product to the women who need it. This publication, developed with support from UK International Development and five ministries of health, shares seven years of evidence on pooled, rapid financing in low- and middle-income countries.
What is the Catalytic Opportunity Fund?
The Catalytic Opportunity Fund (COF) is a flexible, rapid-response, small-grants mechanism, launched in 2019 and administered by CHAI. It pools funding from multiple donors, including the Gates Foundation, UK International Development, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), and MSD for Mothers, into one coordinated source. The fund addresses key bottlenecks to the introduction of new and underused SRH products in low- and middle-income countries. The COF reviews and funds proposals from applicants (NGOs, social marketing organisations and private not-for-profit organisations) within four to five months of application. Successful proposals are endorsed by the ministry of health, are designed to be catalytic and time-bound, solving a defined problem, with funding ending once that bottleneck is addressed.
Why SRH product introduction needs dedicated financing in low- and middle-income countries
Effective SRH products have historically reached women in wealthy countries years, sometimes decades, before they reached women in low- and middle-income countries. The hormonal IUD is an example, available elsewhere for over three decades before an affordable price was negotiated for low- and middle-income countries. However, while a lower price point enabled procurement for many countries, additional work was needed to embed hormonal IUDs in government health systems so they could reach clients. That work included training the providers who insert the IUD, updating a country’s national guidelines that govern the product’s use, integrating it into supply chains and health data systems, and generating the demand that let women know this option exists.
Since 2019, and across 29 countries, the COF has been closing these kinds of gaps by pooling funds from multiple donors, moving that money fast, and keeping governments in the driver’s seat. This publication examines the impact of the COF model from 2019-2025, laying out what worked, what didn’t, and what it means for SRH financing in the future.
