LHW Systems Review - Oxford Policy Management

Selection and recruitment system4 Selection and recruitment system‘With LHWs recruitment there is political involvement. The politicians try to deviate from theselection criteria but the Programme doesn’t let them. They have no commitment to theProgramme and they don’t know the aspects of the Programme. Even after a lot ofdiscussion with them there is delay.’ (District Coordinator)4.1 PurposeTo allocate posts for LHWs and LHSs to applicants who meet the selection criteria and who,after completing the training programme, will be capable of successfully fulfilling the position.4.2 Performance measures• To have 100,000 LHW positions filled by 2005; 11• Each LHW position would have a catchment area with a minimum of 700 people; 12• To recruit sufficient LHSs to ensure a ratio of 1 LHS supervising 25 LHWs; 13 and• For all LHWs and LHSs to meet the selection criteria in respect of:o education: minimum of 8 years’, preferably matriculated;o age: between 20 and 50 years; 14o residency: permanent resident of the area for which she is recruited; ando acceptable to her community.4.3 In operation4.3.1 DescriptionRecruitment targets During the period of this PC-1, the Programme planned to achieve thetarget of 100,000 working LHWs with 4,000 LHSs, giving a ratio of 1:25.Attrition of LHWs in the PC-1 is assumed to be in the order of 5,000 LHWs leaving theProgramme each year. To reach and maintain the target of 100,000 working LHWs, theProgramme would be recruiting 50,000 LHWs. Attrition of LHSs is not covered in the PC-1,probably because the actual number of supervisors is so much fewer than planned.Assuming attrition at a similar rate to that of LHWs (5,000, per annum), then the number ofreplacement LHSs would be 200 per year. The Programme would, then, be recruiting almost4,000 LHSs throughout the period of the PC-1.11The PC-1, LHWP (p. 22), described two phases for implementation. Phase 1 was to be completed by June 2005, when therewould be 100,000 fully-trained LHWs (87,600 funded under the PC-1 and 10,200 by ADB-funded projects). The target wasobviously vulnerable to funding availability.12The standard in the PC-1, LHWP, is that one LHW will be selected to serve a catchment area with a population of 1,000residents. In difficult areas, the registration might be lower (e.g. 700) and, in densely populated areas, it might be 1,200.13PC-1, LHWP: 36.14PC-1, LHWP: 29. The LHW can be recruited at between 18 and 20 years of age only if she is married.9