After a hiatus in 2025, our Country-Led In Action newsletter is back! We explore how our country-led strategy translates into sustainable approaches that improve the health, resilience, and leadership of women and girls around the world.
In this Q&A, we hear from Dr. Amina Dorayi, based in Abuja and serving as Pathfinder’s Regional Portfolio Director, West and Central Africa.
What does “country-led” mean to you and Pathfinder’s work?
Simply put, it means ensuring strategies are born and led in the countries where they live. We work with local partners to align Pathfinder’s support with national priorities and community needs, then identify a network of local champions to lead the work and advocate for its long-term future.
How has Pathfinder’s country-led strategy ensured country-led approaches and solutions?
We’ve equipped our country teams with the technical and operational authority to make independent decisions on finances, implementation, and partnerships. As a global organization, our leaders can draw on ‘South-to-South’ learning and global resources to fuel their local strategies. This allows us to reshape systems through advanced expertise and trusted, home-grown networks that bring the right decision-makers to the table.
Can you give a specific example of how Pathfinder’s country-led approach is put into action?
Nigeria has a recently revised community health worker strategy. We are taking that strategy and seeing how we can support certain states with implementing it. In practice, we sit together with state governments, partners, and donors to co-create, using data to inform us about health worker capacities and renumeration, health needs, and then we cost those strategies. Our aim is to reduce maternal and child deaths. We know that significant impact only happens when we use data to find out what works, what doesn’t, and exactly where system gaps are costing lives.
What role does Pathfinder play in advancing country-led solutions?
In addition to being a convener and government partner, we work with local community-based and civil society organizations to strengthen their own systems and policies, preparing them for growth, increased impact, and the ability to lead sustainable programs. Additionally, because our country and regional leaders at Pathfinder are part of our executive leadership, we share our expertise with a global audience, demonstrating the role that country-led solutions can play.
How are the country-led approaches we support holding governments accountable for progress?
We strengthen the capacity of advocates to hold governments accountable. For instance, we support journalists and bloggers who keep these issues in the public eye. We also convene civil society networks that use data to show where progress is stalling and where investment is vital. Most importantly, we listen to women. They are not just beneficiaries; they are active participants in design, monitoring, and advocacy.
What makes our country-led approach sustainable?
All of our programs are led by country nationals. By design, our support is grounded by lived experience. We have trusted leaders and strong country-based relationships. Sustainability requires we are part of the systems—reviewing policies and plans, engaging in design and review, monitoring and analyzing results. We are sought out by our country-based partners to do all of this.
How does Women&Co—Pathfinder’s new strategy and innovation platform—build on our country-led approach to fuel women-led innovation?
For Women&Co, our country-led approach is the foundation. In Nigeria, we identified women already driving change in their communities and provided a new platform to scale their solutions for health and climate resilience. We are giving young women, in particular, the space to network and lead. Every solution is designed and driven by the women who live there.
If you had three words of wisdom about how successful country-led solutions are run, what would they be?
Trust country teams: They know who to convene and ignite real systems change.
Design with user: Country-led means the ingenuity of the people we serve drives the solution.
Amplify women’s voices: Women know what works. They just need the platform to lead and be heard.
