Since beginning direct work in Côte d’Ivoire in 2017, VillageReach has helped address evolving health challenges, from identifying children missing routine vaccinations to expanding access to COVID-19 vaccines and strengthening access to essential health products
Throughout, the approach has remained consistent: partnering with the Ministry of Health to identify barriers, test solutions and strengthen what works.
Nearly a decade later, the partnership spans supply chains, digital health and information systems, family planning and institutional capacity strengthening, with each chapter building on lessons from the last.
Beginning With Digital Immunization
VillageReach’s first direct program in Côte d’Ivoire began in 2017 in response to children missing routine vaccinations in several districts. In partnership with MoH’s Expanded Programme on Immunization, Orange Côte d’Ivoire and Gavi, VillageReach introduced mVaccin, a digital solution to identify missed vaccinations and help health workers follow up with caregivers.
The initiative also showed how digital tools could reduce administrative burdens. If scaled nationally, mVaccin could cut administrative workload by as much as 96%, freeing health workers to focus more on patient care. Better data also helped identify under-vaccinated children and target follow-up efforts.
More importantly, the technology strengthened an existing government system instead of creating a parallel one. The value of that approach became even clearer when Côte d’Ivoire faced a very different health challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Health workers using mVaccin
Adapting During COVID-19
When COVID-19 reached Côte d’Ivoire, the partnership entered a new phase. VillageReach supported MoH in expanding vaccination services while also addressing another barrier: building public confidence in COVID-19 vaccines.
Initial efforts focused on a high-volume vaccination site in Yopougon-Est, which operated from December 2021 to February 2023 and administered more than 113,000 doses.
But as the pandemic evolved, so did people’s needs. Rather than relying primarily on people coming to a centralized vaccination site, VillageReach and MoH adapted the model so vaccination teams moved closer to communities through outreach across all 10 health districts of Abidjan. Community leaders and local radio helped build confidence and share information about vaccination services.
The shift reinforced a lesson first demonstrated through mVaccin: making services available does not automatically make them accessible. Data, community engagement and adaptable delivery models are all essential to reaching people effectively.
Growing Beyond Individual Projects
As Côte d’Ivoire’s health priorities evolved, the partnership expanded into health product supply chains, family planning, digital health and institutional capacity strengthening. Rather than creating isolated interventions, the focus has been on strengthening the systems that connect them, applying lessons from immunization and COVID-19 to broader efforts to improve access to essential health services.
The challenge may be different, but the question remains the same: what is preventing care from reaching people, and what needs to change?
From Stronger Systems to Better Access
Map showing the redistribution of family planning commodities across Côte d’Ivoire since the launch of the Family Planning Supply Chain Strengthening (FPSCS) project
Côte d’Ivoire’s Gratuité initiative made family planning products and services free, creating an opportunity to expand access. Delivering on that promise requires reliable product availability at health facilities.
Through the Family Planning Supply Chain Strengthening project, VillageReach is supporting MoH’s efforts to strengthen forecasting, inventory management, redistribution and last-mile delivery across 56 health districts, helping translate the government’s commitment to free family planning into reliable access for women and communities.
The work reaches about 1,264 health facility pharmacies and supports nearly 900,000 users of family planning services. In the Nawa Region, the impact has been striking: Stockout rates for family planning products fell from 90% to 10% within one year.
For Diomandé, health coordinator for the Gueyo Health District, that improvement can be seen in the choices women are now able to make.
“In the Gueyo district, family planning products are now available free of charge. Women are deciding for themselves, sometimes with and sometimes without their partners’ consent, to use contraception,” Diomandé said. “It is heartening to visit communities and see that this is already happening. They are taking their health seriously, mainly because the products are available and they finally have a real choice.”
Behind that progress are stronger systems for forecasting, inventory management, redistribution and last-mile delivery.
For Dr. Emmanuel Lofigue Peniyana, district pharmacist for the Gueyo Health District, those changes are making product availability more reliable, even in remote areas. District health officials report that the improvements have helped stabilize supply across the district.
The improvement from 90% stockouts to 10% is an important health system result. But its significance is better captured in Diomandé’s words: women finally have a real choice. This is what stronger systems are ultimately meant to achieve.
Leaving a Lasting Impact
Nearly a decade after its first direct program in Côte d’Ivoire, VillageReach continues to work with government partners on priorities including last-mile distribution, specimen transport, health care waste management and stronger public-private partnerships.
While the challenges have evolved since 2017, the goal remains unchanged: helping ensure people can access the health products, information and services they need when and where they need them.