AbstractOne of the most evident basic human needs is health, but its role in the total pattern of development is complex: it is crucial for improving productivity; it provides the best general measure of improvement in living standards and an indirect measure of progress in other sectors which in turn contribute to health—education, infrastructure and nutrition, for example; health is also coming to be regarded as the main hope for reducing the rate of population growth. As they become increasingly aware of the crucial importance of this sector, donor countries are beginning to give a radically different emphasis to their aid programmes.