Financial Advisory Strategy Taskforce
Strengthening country resilience to health financing shocks.
A sharp decline in external health funding is putting essential health programs at risk across low- and middle-income countries. These shifts threaten progress in areas such as malaria, HIV, tuberculosis, maternal and child health, and immunization—while creating urgent gaps in financing, planning, and coordination.
The Financial Advisory Strategy Taskforce (FAST) is a PATH-led initiative designed to help countries respond quickly and strategically to these disruptions so that scarce health resources are used most efficiently and effectively.
What is FAST?
FAST provides targeted technical assistance to ministries of health to navigate funding reductions and optimize available resources. By combining data, analytics, and strategic planning, the program supports governments to make informed decisions that protect health outcomes by targeting available resources.
FAST supports countries to:
- Assess the impact of health funding reductions
- Identify cost efficiencies and system improvements within and across health programs
- Prioritize high-impact investments using data
- Mobilize additional and more sustainable financing against high-priority causes
Our approach
FAST works alongside governments to strengthen decision-making and resource allocation through five key areas:
- Implementation planning and monitoring
Supporting actionable planning, including short-term implementation plans and monitoring frameworks. - Data systems integration
Improving data systems and analytics to generate real-time, actionable insights for decision-makers. - Costs and system efficiency
Analyzing budgets and program costs to identify inefficiencies and opportunities for optimization. - Sustainable financing
Identifying pathways to diversify funding and strengthen domestic resource mobilization. - Knowledge sharing
Capturing and sharing lessons and best practices to inform national and global health financing strategies.
FAST work in countries
Currently, FAST operates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Mozambique
- The Democratic Republic of the Congo (May 2025 - December 2026)
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The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to face a high burden of disease, with malaria, lower respiratory infections, tuberculosis, and neonatal disorders ranking among the top causes of deaths in 2023.
With nearly half of health funding coming from various development assistance sources and compounded by further estimates of cutbacks from major donors by 2030, the country is highly exposed to funding disruptions.
FAST, with funding from Coefficient Giving and GiveWell, is supporting the DRC Ministry of Health (MOH) in responding to funding reductions through evidence-based planning and resource allocation.
Key focus areas include:
- Generating real-time insights on the impact of funding reductions to guide MOH decision-making
- Optimizing the use of limited resources through efficiency identification and cost-effectiveness analysis
- Catalyzing additional financing from external and domestic sources.
PATH's role
- Data and analytics: Integrate and analyze data to assess the impact of funding reductions across programs and systems.
- Efficiency identification: Identify opportunities to streamline programs and reduce costs while maintaining impact.
- Resource prioritization: Support the MOH to allocate limited resources in line with national priorities.
- Learning and knowledge sharing: Facilitate a light-touch learning agenda, including sharing insights, case studies, and best practices with partners, countries, and donors.
Learn more here.
- Mozambique (January 2026 - May 2027)
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Mozambique faces a high burden of disease, including malaria, HIV, and tuberculosis, alongside ongoing maternal and child health challenges. With nearly half of health funding previously supported by external sources, the country is particularly vulnerable to funding disruptions.
FAST, with funding from Coefficient Giving, is supporting the Department of Planning and Cooperation to respond to these challenges through evidence-based planning and strategic decision-making for resource allocation.
Key focus areas include:
- Strengthening implementation and monitoring of national health plans
- Enhancing integrated data systems to guide prioritization
- Identifying efficiencies across programs and budgets
PATH’s role
PATH provides embedded technical support to enable rapid and informed decision-making, including:
- Data collection, integration, and analysis
- Identification of programmatic and cost efficiencies
- Support for prioritization of limited resources
- Facilitation of cross-country learning and exchange
Lear more here.
Program highlights
FAST DRC:
Enabling evidence-based decision-making through integrated dashboards
Developed financing and cost-effectiveness dashboards that synthesize donor funding data and program-level efficiency insights to support decision-makers with identifying funding gaps and prioritizing health investments across key programs.
Supporting national prioritization and donor planning
Generated cost-effectiveness and prioritization insights to inform decision-making on priority funding areas, including for the Global Fund Grant Cycle 8 and Gavi 6.0 applications.
Informing universal health coverage (UHC) financing design.
Conducted a comparative review of UHC financing models across four sub-Saharan African countries to inform the national financing approach.
Strengthening financial model assumptions.
Supported the Health Solidarity Fund with a financial and operational assessment of DRC’s national health insurance system through improved revenue projections from a proposed payroll tax to finance UHC.
Resources
Fact sheets
- FAST, DRC (available in English and French)
- FAST, Mozambique (available in English and Portuguese)
Articles, related media news
- DRC nears historic 14.5% Abuja target for health sovereignty, Devex, March 2026
Contact us
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