HISP Launches DHIS2 Shared Services Fee to Strengthen Long-Term Platform Sustainability

The HISP Centre at the University of Oslo has introduced a new collective financing model aimed at ensuring the long-term sustainability of DHIS2, the open-source information management system used by national governments in 76 countries and estimated to touch the lives of 3.6 billion people worldwide. At the heart of the model is the DHIS2 Contributing Partners program, which gives organizations that support the platform a formal voice in shaping its future. The model centers on a voluntary annual contribution called the Shared Services Fee, or SSF, which organizations can pay to help fund the shared global infrastructure that underpins the platform, and the DHIS2 Contributing Partners program, which gives contributing organizations a formal voice in shaping the platform’s future. Together, they are designed around a simple principle: organizations that help sustain DHIS2 also help guide it.

The SSF is not a license or a paywall. DHIS2 remains free, open-source, and available to all users regardless of whether they contribute. The SSF does not affect access to the software, but rather, it is a contribution toward sustaining the continuously delivered bundle of services—including core software development, security updates, interoperability frameworks, documentation, and global coordination—that make DHIS2 viable at scale.

The new model responds to a recognized shift in the global health funding landscape. Donor organizations that have historically funded DHIS2’s development and maintenance have pivoted toward focusing their funding on country-level systems, leaving a gap in funding for the core DHIS2 platform. The SSF model has been developed in dialogue with these organizations and our network of local and global partners as a way to incorporate support for the platform into country-level funding mechanisms and national budgets. This makes the SSF aligned with the Lusaka Agenda’s goals of a gradual transition away from LMIC dependence on external support for health system financing and toward increased local ownership.

“The global health funding environment is changing, and DHIS2 needs to change with it,” said DHIS2 Strategic Advisor Scott Russpatrick. “Rather than compromise the open, country-owned model that has made DHIS2 trusted by governments and partners around the world, we chose to deepen our community model, and create a mechanism where those who benefit from the platform also invest in keeping it strong.” 

Organizations that pay the SSF are recognized as DHIS2 Contributing Partners, a status that comes with opportunities to participate in strategic briefings and partner forums, provide input into the DHIS2 product roadmap, and engage in discussions on platform priorities and governance. Contributing partners are co-stewards of the platform, with an early line of sight into the platform’s evolution and stronger coordination across the HISP network. The Contributing Partners program transforms contributors from users into active participants with a direct role in guiding the platform they depend on.

To learn more about contributing to DHIS2 via the SSF, visit our webpage, Sustaining DHIS2 Together, or contact the HISP Centre at partnership@dhis2.org.