Charles Gerhardt

Health Planning & Institutional Management Advisor

HERA Right to Health and Development

Charles Gerhardt has been in international (health) development for over 30 years, as practitioner, business manager, health management advisor, process consultant and trainer. He has worked for various funding agencies, knowledge centres and (non) governmental health care provider institutions at headquarters’ and field level, in Europe, Africa, the Middle-East and Asia.

As country representative of the Netherlands Ministry for International Co-operation in Cameroun and Mali and in his capacity as Head of the ‘International Projects” department at the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), he has obtained substantial experience in business planning, partnership development, (sub) contracting, financial management & controlling, monitoring and evaluation.

Over the last 20 years, he has further specialised in health system strengthening. Working as Programme Coordinator at the Ministry of Health and Social Services in Namibia (managing a 12,5 Million Euro Health Sector Support Project), Health & Population Programme Manager at the European Delegation in Egypt (implementing a multi donor funded National Health Sector Reform Programme in the region of 75 Million Euro) and until recently as Senior Health Management Advisor at the Christian Health Association of Ghana (facilitating an institutional and organisational development process of a network organisation comprising over 180 clinics, hospitals and training colleges), he built up a considerable experience in governance, managing ‘Public Private Partnerships’, health sector financing and performance-based planning and monitoring, both at strategic and operational level.

Charles Gerhardt has also built up a track record as (short-term) ‘change management’ consult and process facilitator in over 25 countries. In addition, he is a visiting lecturer in Health System Strengthening at two international training institutions.

Charles Gerhardt has further carried out numerous formulation, monitoring and review missions in over 25 countries, within and outside of the health sector. He has formulated a number of national health (sector support) projects, including the second phase of an EC funded support programme to the National Aids Strategy in Namibia. In 2000 and 2001 he conducted the Mid-Term Review of the Health Sector Support Programmes I & II, financed by the European Commission under the 8th European Development Fund for Ministry of Health & Child Welfare in Zimbabwe. In 2003, he conducted a system audit of the Family Health Fund in Egypt, an embryonic purchasing agency of primary health care services in 3 provinces with a total value of 20 Million Euro. Also in 2003 he formulated the medium term development plan for the health sector in Surinam. In 2006 he developed the Lao – Lux integrated health care development program in Laos. In 2006 he assisted DANIDA with the appraisal of the 4th phase of the DANIDA funded Ghana Health Sector Support. In 2006 he conducted a review of an EC funded health program in Syria. That very same year, he was a member of an evaluation team looking into UNFPA’s experience in increasing aid-effectiveness in Zambia.  In 2012, the Ministry of Health of Ghana requested him to conduct an institutional and organisational assessment of the health sector. Since mid 2006 he is seconded to the University of Rwanda as International Programme Manager for the EAC Regional Centre of Excellence for Vaccines, Immunization and Health Supply Chain Management (EAC-RCE-VIHSCM).

Capitalising on his extensive experience in working with Ministries of Health and service delivery organisations, over the past few years he has become increasingly involved in curriculum development, teaching and coaching.