WHO defines private sector engagement in service delivery as “The meaningful inclusion of private providers for service delivery in mixed health systems”.
In this context, private sector engagement may imply collaboration in the provision of health services, pharmaceutical and medical products, financial products, health workforce capacity-building, information technology, infrastructure, or support services.
In 2021, the WHO Regional Office developed a position paper on Engaging the private health sector to advance universal health coverage and health security in the Eastern Mediterranean Region to explain WHO’s approach for engaging the private health sector to achieve UHC and health security.