Sustainability of community health programme using community-based organizations: a challenge for stakeholders

A community tuberculosis programme was implemented in Burkina Faso with funding from the Global Fund to fight HIV tuberculosis and malaria. Three years after the end of the funding, it seemed necessary to examine what remains of this innovative programme, which used civil society organizations for implementation. The objective of this study was to assess the factors that influence the capacity for sustainability and the level of sustainability of the programme.Methods The case study approach was used to retrospectively identify the factors that influence the capacity for sustainability and the level of sustainability of the programme. Semi structured interviews were conducted with key informants. The data were analysed according to the theoretical frameworks of Schell and Pluye. Data was analysed using NVivo 12.Results Strong support at the national level enabled the acquisition of funding for this programme, while the instability of financial resources was a drawback to sustainability. The lack of leadership of some associations did not allow the continuation of activities after the end of the funding. The irregularity of funding and the failure to conduct a final evaluation of the programme were the weakest links in the sustainability of the programme. Thus, the analysis of our data showed precarious sustainability at the time of the study.Conclusion A well-designed community programme with a strong capacity for sustainability is not necessarily maintained after funding is withdrawn. The implementation of a community programme must ensure that it is integrated into the existing organizational system. The objectives and operating rules of the host structures must be in line with those of the programme to be implemented.