The Politics of the Basic Benefit Package Health Reforms in Tajikistan

Health reform is a fundamentally political process. Yet, evidence on the interplay between domestic politics, international aid and the technical dimensions of health systems, particularly in the former Soviet Union and Central Asia, remains limited.

Little regard has been given to the political dimensions of Tajikistan’s Basic Benefit Package (BBP) reforms that regulate entitlements to a guaranteed set of healthcare services while introducing co-payments. The objective of this paper is therefore to explore the governance constraints to the introduction and implementation of the BBP and associated health management changes.