Table 2.

In your view, what is the importance of health policy dialogue?

Response	Category 1 (manifest)	Category 2 (manifest)	Theme
The PD was invaluable when we were reviewing the progress the ministry had made over the period. We held a general health conference where we had to do an analysis comparing the achievements of the previous period against the targets we had set. We convened stakeholders not only from the MoH but also health colleagues from the county level, partners and donors. We reviewed progress and this galvanised the sector.	Brings key stakeholders together to review health sector performance.	Ensures participation of stakeholders in assessing health sector performance.	Ensures stakeholder participation in planning and monitoring.
Having the annual review and bringing together policy-makers to plan and assess the ministry's performance over the past year and plan for the next financial year. It brings together policy-makers, and decisions are made there.	Brings policy-makers together to plan and assess the ministry's performance and plan for the following financial year.	Encourages stakeholder input in MoH’s achievements and participation in shaping the health agenda.
At the national level, for the broader issues it is very much meetings followed by opportunities for input through written feedback. In the case of the Community Health Services Division, it is a smaller group of people, so it can be made to be intentionally more participatory. It is hard when you have the entire country trying to participate in one thing versus if you have stakeholders that are a bit more confined around a certain issue. I would say that overall, it’s been designed with the right level of participation, given the number of stakeholders that have to participate to develop large, overarching policies versus a division-specific policy, which allows more involvement.	Offers opportunities for input through written and participatory frameworks at the national and sub-national levels.	Encourages stakeholder input at the national and sub-national levels.
The importance is that it leads to cooperative solutions, which often facilitates the understanding of decisions.	Leads to cooperative solutions, which often facilitates the understanding of decisions.	Comes up with cooperative solutions understandable to all stakeholders.	Permits joint identification of problems and possible solutions.
At the end of this activity, the major concerns are shared with all stakeholders in an environment where each party brings solutions	Major concerns are shared with all stakeholders and each party brings solution.	Allows joint identification of problems and possible solutions.
The importance is to share the challenge we face in the health system to improve the health of the people that we care for. There are other sectors that work to improve the health of our people, and the importance of policy dialogue is to provide a mechanism so all these players can then contribute to improve the health of the population.	Permits sharing of challenges with all actors and allows all actors to contribute to solutions.	Allows joint identification of problems and possible solutions.
From our experience it is a process that is very important because it allows everyone to be involved – the authorities, the health services and the population –in health policies.	Allows involvement of all stakeholders.	Allows involvement of all stakeholders.	Ensures a participatory approach to health planning, problem solving and validation of action plans.
PD brings together all stakeholders involved in the management of the health business, including those involved in the health committee on HIV/AIDS established by the Togolese State, the decentralised services at prefecture level other actors, politicians, traditional leaders in the prefecture, NGOs and all stakeholders who are represented in order to reflect on the health problem in our prefecture.	Brings together all stakeholders primarily involved in the management of health sector.	Ensures participation of all actors.
This policy dialogue allows for the views of all stakeholders to be heard and for validating the action plans.	Allows for the views of all stakeholders to be heard and for validation of action plans.	Ensures participatory approach to health development.
Through this dialogue the parties find solutions.	Enables parties to find solutions.	Ensures participatory problem solving.

MoH ministry of health, PD policy dialogue