Community-financing in developing countries: the potential for the health sector

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Abstract
This paper attempts to give greater specificity to the concept of community-financing and thus clarify its role so that its potential and its limitations can be more comprehensively appraised. Its potential role differs widely according to the characteristics of communities, cultural attitudes and political systems. Community-financing does have a role to play in extending the activities of the health sector in developing countries. It can mobilize contributions in rural communities which formal social security schemes cannot reach because of the difficulty of assessing and collecting contributions. The community can be very effective in mobilizing material and human resources. But there are also important limitations to community-financing, one of which is its inability to bring about greater equity in health care. Often too, revenue, volunteer activity and local residence are unstable. Unless there is massive public education most people prefer to pay for health care only when they need it. As such they are more prepared to support curative rather than preventive activities.

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