authors
Oreoluwa Onabowale

abstract
Healthcare access gaps in developing economies continue to pose significant barriers to achieving universal health coverage and sustainable development goals. Traditional funding mechanisms, heavily reliant on constrained public budgets or international aid, have proven insufficient to meet the growing demand for affordable and equitable healthcare infrastructure. Against this backdrop, blended finance partnerships have emerged as a promising model for mobilizing and optimizing resources across multiple stakeholders. By strategically combining public funds, private capital, and philanthropic contributions, blended finance structures reduce investment risks, enhance scalability, and enable long-term sustainability of healthcare projects. At a broader level, this model addresses systemic inefficiencies by leveraging risk-sharing mechanisms and aligning financial incentives with social outcomes. From a narrower perspective, blended finance facilitates the development of essential healthcare infrastructure such as primary care facilities, diagnostic laboratories, and supply chain systems, while also expanding access to innovations like digital health technologies and renewable-powered clinics. Furthermore, it fosters cross-sector collaboration, wherein governments provide regulatory support, private investors contribute capital efficiency, and philanthropic organizations catalyze social impact. However, challenges such as governance alignment, transparency, and outcome measurement must be addressed to maximize impact. Ultimately, blended finance partnerships represent a transformative approach to healthcare financing in developing economies, providing a pathway to resilient, inclusive, and sustainable healthcare systems.