Future of hospitals and health systems

For people, places, and planet

A collaborative initiative to support a transformational agenda for hospitals and their health systems in low-resource settings.

Coming together for communities, patients, and healthcare professionals in vulnerable contexts

The initiative will concentrate action on settings where hospitals and health systems have low resources.

The IHF provides our members with a platform for knowledge exchange and networking with different actors in the health sector. Motivated by a shared commitment to well-managed hospitals, our members act together to improve the standard, quality, and level of healthcare service delivery. The IHF's Geneva Sustainability Centre supports hospitals and healthcare services to address the sustainability challenges of today and tomorrow, working with and for the communities they serve. The impact on quality of life, resilience, and the wellbeing of communities will improve health for all.

In late 2023, our consortium of five organizations – the French Development Agency (AFD), the Aga Khan Development Network, la Chaîne de l’Espoir, the Climate Action Accelerator, and the International Hospital Federation’s Geneva Sustainability Centre – collaborated to launch this initiative. We were driven by a common goal: to support hospitals in vulnerable settings to respond to the growing demand for healthcare in a sustainable and equitable way. Vulnerabilities can be caused by shortages of financial, human, or technical resources, or a combination of these, and can be exacerbated by global threats (e.g. climate change, outbreaks and pandemic).

In 2024, we hosted a series of interactive technical exchanges to build knowledge, and share best practices to guide the activities of the initiative. We welcomed participation from: leaders and representatives of hospitals (public and private), professional associations, technical experts, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and civil society stakeholders.

Each session explored action points around the four key themes:

  1. Hospitals and health systems workforce support and development.
  2. Resource mobilization and access to finance.
  3. Environmentally sustainable hospitals and health systems, focusing on low carbon, resilient and sustainable healthcare models.
  4. Quality of care provided by hospitals and their health systems.

You can find more information in the 2024 Annual Report.

Thank you to participants who joined us from around the world to contribute to the discussions for this initiative. We will continue working on these four key topics in 2025 and beyond.

Find out more about the initiative, its activities and the plan going forward in the 2025 report.

For more information and to contribute, please contact Aditi Jayaram, Project Officer.

Technical dives

November 2025 - Collaborating for care: Future of integrated healthcare solutions for low resource settings

On November 13th, 2025 at the 48th World Hospital Congress in Geneva, Switzerland the Future of Hospitals and Health Systems initiative hosted a panel session on Collaborating for care: Future of integrated healthcare solutions for low resource settings.

The panel explored how multi-disciplinary collaboration can build sustainable, high-quality healthcare in low-resource settings—tackling the intertwined challenges of finance, workforce, climate, and operations. Chaired by Dr Zeenat Khan (Aga Khan Health Services, East Africa), the panel brought together voices with real-world experience: Amadou Diallo (La Chaîne de L'Espoir, France), Murtaza Mukhtar (Aga Khan Hospital, Tanzania), Dr Karan Thakur (Apollo Hospitals, India), and Camille Perreand (French Development Agency, France). Key takeaways centered on designing interconnected interventions that respond to local realities while advancing global goals like Universal Health Care and climate adaptation—integrating financial innovation, workforce development, climate-resilient practices, and improved patient care.

November 2025 - Building tomorrow’s healthcare: financing, resilience and replicable infrastructure models

On November 13th, 2025 the Future of Hospitals and Health Systems initiative in partnership with the Climate Action Accelerator hosted a webinar on: Building tomorrow’s healthcare: financing, resilience and replicable infrastructure models.

The webinar brought together experts to tackle two pressing challenges facing healthcare systems today: climate change and crumbling infrastructure. The conversation centered on an urgent question—how can we build health facilities that are climate-resilient, low-carbon, and ready to scale? Isabelle Brun from the Council of Europe Development Bank and Amy Savage from WHO kicked things off by connecting health infrastructure to climate action, building on the energy from the 2025 World Health Assembly. From there, Vera Siesjö (Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank), Serge Ntwari (ICRC), and Raymond Bertrand (Consulting for Healthcare International) shared hands-on advice, funding strategies, and real examples of designing resilient facilities, cutting emissions, and weaving in nature-based solutions across different settings. With Professor Karl Blanchet from the University of Geneva guiding the discussion, the session focused on what really matters: working together, unlocking climate finance, and using practical tools to turn plans into action. Agnès Soucat from the French Development Agency wrapped up by highlighting the real opportunity here—transforming healthcare infrastructure into a foundation for climate-resilient health systems.

Listen to the talk

October 2025 - Driving quality in resource-limited settings: Leadership, KPIs and accreditation

On 2 October 2025, the Future of Hospitals and Health Systems Initiative hosted a webinar on: “Driving quality in resource-limited settings: Leadership, KPIs andaccreditation”.

Chaired by Dr Zeenat Sulaiman Khan (Regional CEO AKHS East Africa/Global Head of Quality, AKDN), the session brought together leaders from Latin America, Asia and Africa to explore how organizations can strengthen leadership, governance, and accountability to drive quality and patient safety, even when resources are limited.

The session highlighted that quality healthcare starts with leadership, culture, and practical measurement. Dr Adolfo Llinás Volpe (Fundación Santa Fe de Bogotá) stressed that governance and leadership must align with quality strategy, fostering openness, teamwork, and continuous learning even in resource-constrained settings. Dr Karan Thakur (Apollo Hospitals) showed how clear KPIs, ACE scorecards, and global accreditation frameworks help embed a zero-harm mindset and turn data into better patient outcomes across large hospital networks. Complementing this, Dr Aafke DeGraaff (PharmAccess Foundation) presented the SafeCare model as a scalable, step-by-step pathway that enables facilities to steadily improve quality and safety rather than viewing accreditation as a one-time goal. Together, the speakers underlined that sustainable improvement depends on strong leadership, meaningful measurement, embedded standards, and collaboration to build resilient, high-quality health systems.

Listen to the talk

July 2025 - AI in action: Supporting healthcare workers in low-resource settings

On 17 July, the Future of Hospitals and Health Systems Initiative, in partnership with l’Agence Française de Développement (AFD) hosted a webinar on: “AI in Action: Supporting the healthcare workforce in low-resource settings.”

With low- and middle-income countries expected to face a shortfall of 11 million health workers by 2030, speakers explored scalable innovations, potential pitfalls, and policy implications.

Speakers showed how AI can transform healthcare when it is practical, people-centred, and ethically guided. Vivek Rajagopal (Narayana Health, India) demonstrated how AI tools like record summarization and smart scheduling can drastically cut waiting times and double care capacity without new infrastructure. Professor Asad Mian (Evercare) urged participants to “innovate with empathy,” sharing examples of co-created AI tools that support frontline workers and strengthen equity rather than replace human judgement. Shaukat Ali Khan (Aga Khan University) highlighted how long-term investment in AI literacy embeds responsible AI into both hospital operations and medical education. Closing the session, Scott Mahoney (Gates Foundation) stressed that AI’s promise in LMICs depends on strong ethics, gender sensitivity, governance, and co-creation.
Across the panel, the speakers agreed: AI should enhance efficiency and access while reinforcing empathy, trust, and the human core of healthcare.

Listen to the talk

July 2025 - Training for transformation – human resources for health in West Africa

On 3 July 2025, the Future of Hospitals and Health Systems Initiative, in partnership with the French NGO La Chaîne de l’Espoir, hosted a webinar on: “Training human resources for health in low-resource settings: The transferable example from regional anaesthesia in West Africa.”

Regional anaesthesia (RA), particularly ultrasound-guided regional anaesthesia (UGRA), is a safe and cost-effective technique that improves patient outcomes by reducing pain, complications, recovery time, and reliance on general anaesthesia. While widely used in high-income countries, its application remains limited, and in low- and middle-income countries—especially in West Africa—uptake is constrained by shortages of trained staff, equipment, and standardized guidelines. At the webinar, Prof. Afak Nsiri, Dr Thomas Kefas Malau, Prof. Zouménou, and Dr Xavier Raingeval shared practical experiences showing how “training the trainers” models can successfully expand UGRA capacity, including training non-physician providers. Sébastien Chamayou and Magali Taïeb-Cohen highlighted the importance of addressing professional resistance, emotional dynamics, and voluntary participation in training to ensure acceptance and sustainability. Overall, expanding UGRA supports the development of safer, greener, and more resilient health systems while improving equity and quality of care.

Listen to the recording

March 2025 - Healthcare Climate Transformation: From Tools to Investments for Sustainable Funding

On March 5th, 2025, the Climate Action Accelerator (CAA) and the French Development Agency (AFD) delivered the webinar on Healthcare Climate Transformation: From Tools to Investments for Sustainable Funding for the Future of Hospitals and Health Systems (FHHS) initiative.

This session focused on aiming to bridge the gap between strategy and implementation. It showcased practical tools and methodologies to support climate resilience and low-carbon models in healthcare.
This included helping understand the challenges faced by policy makers, an overview of key tools and practical experiences and a discussion on the challenges and opportunities for financing and implementing solutions.

The session was moderated by Distinguished Professor Bob Mash (Stellenbosch University), and featured insights from experts like Dr. Agnès Soucat (AFD), Levani Naidoo (Western Cape Government), Alexander Robert (Climate Action Accelerator), and Jit Sohal (National University of Singapore).

Listen to the recording

December 2024 - How can Development Banks support the emergence of tomorrow’s health systems ?

On 12 December, 2024 the latest webinar of the initiative brought together the French Development Agency (AFD), the International Hospital Federation (IHF), the Geneva Sustainability Centre (GSC), the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), the Climate Action Accelerator (CAA), and La Chaîne de L'Espoir.

The session addressed the pressing need for investments in hospitals' people, facilities, and management to build sustainable and resilient health systems and it was focused on the role of Development Banks.

Moderated by Thomas Kergall (Council of Europe Development Bank), the webinar featured insights from experts like Dr. Agnès Soucat (AFD), Deni Fauzi (AIIB), Dr. Muhammed Semakula (MoH Rwanda), Prof. Karl Blanchet (University of Geneva), Tata Sumirat (PTSMI), and Mr. Christophe Lemiere (World Bank).

Listen to the recording

September - at the IHF World Hospital Congress: Sustainable quality of care: Transformation of hospitals and health systems in low-resource settings

This session took place at the World Hospital Congress in Rio de Janeiro in September 2024. The speakers explored questions such as:
How to integrate sustainable and resilient principles as part of clinical governance? What are the challenges faced in terms of quality structure, processes and monitoring, and how can we overcome them?

The discussions focused on practical and operational aspects of healthcare delivery and management to to identify potential gaps and levers for action.

Speakers:
Dr Zeenat Khan, Regional CEO, Aga Khan Health Services, East Africa, Kenya
Peninah Kirea, RN BSCN MSC, Chief Nursing Officer / Healthcare Quality Specialist, Avenue Health Care, Kenya
Prof. Syed Faisal Mahmood, Professor of Infectious Diseases, Associate Chief Medical Officer for IPC, Aga Khan University, Pakistan

June 6th Launch event- Keynote Opening Session (hybrid)

Keynote speakers framed the day, provided context, and introduced strategic concepts around sustainability and integrated health care systems from operational and academic perspectives.

Agnès Soucat, Director of Health and Social Protection, AFD
Dr Gijs Walraven, Director for Health AKDN
Dr Relebohile Ncha, Chief Director: Hospitals and Tertiary Health Services, National Department of Health, South Africa
Prof. Karl Blanchet, Director of the Geneva Centre of Humanitarian Studies and Professor in Humanitarian Public Health at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva

Read the summary and view the recordings

June 6th Launch event- Panel 1 (hybrid)

Human resources in hospitals and healthcare systems: Challenges and key models to face shortage and build new skills.

Prof. Gabriel Ciss, Head of the cardio-vascular service of Public Hospital (CHU) Fann, Senegal
Dr Xavier Raingeval, Anaesthetist and trainer, France
Dr Fely Marilyn Lorenzo, Retired professor, College of Public Health at the University of the Philippines; Former Project Director USAIDHRH2030
Aseel J Faraj MPH, Projects manager, Community Health, La Chaine de l’espoir, Jordan

Moderator: Catherine Kane, Technical Officer, WHO

Read the summary and view the recordings

June 6th Launch event-Panel 2 (hybrid)

Environmentally sustainable hospitals and health systems: Focus on low-carbon, resilient and sustainable healthcare models.

Mélanie Tarabbo, Operational Medical Manager, ALIMA (the Alliance for International Medical Action), France
Jit Sohal, Regional Climate Manager, Health Care Without Harm Southeast Asia
Dr Toseef Din, Chief Executive Officer, M. P. Shah Hospital, Kenya
Dr Juan Felipe Valencia Rios, General Director, SES University Hospital, Caldas, Colombia

Moderator: Bruno Jochum, Executive Director and founder, Climate Action Accelerator

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June 6th Launch event-Panel 3 (hybrid)

Investment and resource mobilization: Involving the financing community and exploring resource mobilization for health systems transformation.

Tata Sumirat, Team Leader, PTSMI, Indonesia
Dr Lia Partakusuma, PERSI Hospital Association of Indonesia
Marion Cros, Senior Economist, Health at World Bank Group
Dr Ignacio Astorga, Health Lead Specialist, Inter American Development Bank, El Salvador

Moderator: Thomas Kergall, Senior Technical Advisor for Health & Social Care at Council of Europe Development Bank

Read the summary and view the recordings