WHO DG election race: It’s the final countdown …!
Just a few more weeks before we will know who will head WHO in the coming years.
Open letter calling upon candidates to commit themselves (and WHO) to replace user fees with public financing
In the run up to the elections for WHO DG, civil society organisations (led by Oxfam) are organising an open letter to the candidates calling on them to (publicly) commit themselves and WHO, to replace user fees with public financing, sorry – PUBLIC FINANCING.
We hope many of you will sign this letter, either individually or on behalf of your institution! See
https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/KTL7FPZ
Signatures will be accepted until 18:00 BST Wednesday 10 May.
Let’s keep up the pressure on the candidates and WHO (as well as the WB, UHC ‘partners in crime’…)! Stay also tuned for a related
Twitter action on 11-16 May.
Devex - A new deal for health
Sania Nishtar;
https://www.devex.com/news/opinion-a-new-deal-for-health-90171
You probably know by now that we’re fans of Sania Nishtar. Read why. In this op-ed, she explains her vision on WHO and ‘new deal for health’ in eloquent terms. (PS: among others, she vows ‘no deals to gain the helm of WHO’)
Next stop, Geneva
http://www.researchresearch.com/news/article/?articleId=1367615
Remarkable piece. “
David Nabarro is confident he has enough votes to become the next director-general of the World Health Organization. Others are less sure, as Lila Randall reports.”
“
My mantra is going to be ‘relevance, response and results’,” says David Nabarro, who is in the final stages of a campaign to become the next director-general of the World Health Organization.
… … Ministers from the WHO’s 194 member states will vote in a secret ballot on 22 and 23 May at the World Health Assembly in Geneva, where the winner will be announced before midnight on 23 May. Speaking to Research Fortnight by phone from New York, Nabarro was nearing the end of a gruelling 45-country tour to persuade health ministers that he deserves their vote. He needs 98 votes to safely win, but he is confident that he has secured about 100.”
I would imagine this Macron-style early “leak” (see Macron celebrating at a brasserie in Paris after the first round of the presidential elections) will hurt Nabarro’s case, when push comes to shove, but then again, I’m rather naïve on how these things work at the highest diplomatic level. …
AMR Times - newsletter
http://us12.campaign-archive1.com/?u=e0843acdad65f1015abe3d62b&id=2790d54aa9
The latest issue of this AMR newsletter has all the candidates’ stances on what needs to be done to tackle AMR.
Plos (blog) – Where do the (3) candidates for the next WHO Director General stand on the most challenging global health issues of the decade?
A E Birn et al;
http://blogs.plos.org/yoursay/2017/05/04/where-do-the-3-candidates-for-the-whos-next-director-general-stand-on-the-most-challenging-global-health-issues-of-our-time/
The 3 WHO DG candidates are asked to address critical issues in global health, with their unedited answers provided.
“… While there have been profiles and interviews of the candidates in such leading venues as the Lancet and the New York Times, these pieces have not covered the most crucial political economy issues facing the organization and the range of actors involved in global health, and, most importantly, how these issues affect the health of the public. As co-authors of Oxford University Press’s just-published Textbook of Global Health (4th edition), we have drawn from the book’s critical political economy of health framing (that is, how health and disease are produced and influenced by political, economic, and social structures [practices, institutions, and policies] and social [class, race, and gender] interrelations) to pose a series of direct questions to the three candidates: Dr. Sania Nishtar (SN), of Pakistan; Dr. David Nabarro (DN), of the United Kingdom; and Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (TAG), of Ethiopia….” Check out their answers.
Questions were: (1) How seriously will you take the societal determinants of health and what specific actions will you lead in this regard? (2) How will you ensure that non-state actors do not capture the WHO and thereby neuter the role of UN member states in decision-making? What specific novel policies will you propose to improve health equity and strengthen health outcomes in LMICs? What specific plans do you have to counter the climate change denialists, given the wealth of data on the negative impact of climate change on health?
And read also the
authors’ final observations (at the end of the blog – they aren’t that impressed, it seems… ), including their conclusion: “
In sum, in order to address global health’s most fundamental challenges, each of the candidates for WHO Director-General ought to pay greater attention to, and act protagonistically around, the structural issues—global trade and financial governance arrangements and rules, patterns of wealth and ownership, production processes, imperialism, militarism, and class, race, and gender oppression—that shape ill health and health inequities both within societies and across the world.”
Inaugural Planetary Health/Geohealth conference (Boston, MA April 28-30)
https://planetaryhealthannualmeeting.org/
(See also last week’s IHP featured article by
Renzo Guinto - Building the social foundations of planetary health )
Some key reads related to this
inaugural conference, more or less the official launch of the new
planetary health paradigm (
or is it already the second milestone after the publication of the planetary health report last year?):
See also hashtag
#PHGH2017 or the
abstract booklet in the Lancet (special issue with all the abstracts) -
Inaugural Planetary Health/GeoHealth Annual Meeting
As Climate Protesters March, Researchers Gather For New Field: 'Planetary Health'
Common Health;
Must-read.
“… The changing environment is affecting human health in all kinds of unpleasantly surprising ways — to the point that researchers are launching a new field, "planetary health," to explore them. They're holding their first annual conference this weekend in Boston, funded by the Rockefeller Foundation and also backed by Harvard, the Wellcome Trust, medical journal The Lancet and two big scientific societies. So while marchers are out in the streets calling for action on climate change, nearly 400 conference-goers at Harvard Medical School will be discussing just what the changing environment is doing — and likely to do — to our health. I spoke with Harvard's Dr. Sam Myers, director of the Planetary Health Alliance and lead organizer of the conference. “
“…
I would very carefully not say 'climate change.' The whole concept of planetary health is that human activity is increasingly disrupting all of our planet's natural systems, including the climate system but also including land use, land cover, global fisheries, freshwater systems, bio-geochemical cycles, and a variety of other natural systems.” …” … So it's not specific to climate change. But it's a bringing-together of the earth and natural scientists, the ecologists and the mainstream public health professionals who have all been feeling different parts of the elephant. They've all been recognizing in their own ways — within their societies and their disciplines — that the changes that they're seeing in the earth and natural sciences are increasingly having very immediate impacts on the health of particular populations.”
“..And, meanwhile,
you're helping to launch the field of planetary health at a time when the administration of the U.S. government seems to be going in the other direction. “
There’s no reason to feel despondent, though. “As former EPA administrator, Gina McCarthy,
put it at the conference, it’s time to stop sulking over the Trump administration’s anti-climate-science stance, to get to work, and
to speak out. “
Get the mopes off your faces and pull up your big-boy pants.””
(
and in the worst case, we will – Billy Joël style – all go down togetherrr-r-r !)
GeoHealth (Commentary) - A case for Planetary Health/GeoHealth
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2017GH000084/full
Must-read. “
Concern has been spreading across scientific disciplines that the pervasive human transformation of Earth's natural systems is an urgent threat to human health. The simultaneous emergence of “GeoHealth” and “Planetary Health” signals recognition that developing a new relationship between humanity and our natural systems is becoming an urgent global health priority—if we are to prevent a backsliding from the past century's great public health gains. Achieving meaningful progress will require collaboration across a broad swath of scientific disciplines as well as with policy makers, natural resource managers, members of faith communities, and movement builders around the world in order to build a rigorous evidence base of scientific understanding as the foundation for more robust policy and resource management decisions that incorporate both environmental and human health outcomes.”
The Broker – Decoupling: a key fantasy of the SDG agenda
Robert Fletcher;
http://www.thebrokeronline.eu/Blogs/Inclusive-Economy-Africa/Decoupling-a-key-fantasy-of-the-SDG-agenda
“At the core of the new SDGs is the idea that economic growth (defined as money flow or market value) can be ‘decoupled’ from the physical growth of the economy (resource consumption) and the associated environmental pressures (degradation, pollution). Paradoxically, however, the concept’s main promoters admit that there is virtually no evidence that decoupling works, that the conceptual basis for it is weak, and that even if it were possible it is not politically feasible. Decoupling is, thus, a dangerous fantasy sustained by disavowal – the simultaneous admission and denial – of its impossibility in practice.”
You find the
paper on which this article is based
Decoupling: A Key Fantasy of the Post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda (in Globalizations)
Bloomberg – More than 60,000 Children Under the Age of Five Drown Every Year. Bloomberg Philanthropies Commits $25 Million to Address the Problem
https://www.bloomberg.org/press/releases/60000-children-age-five-drown-every-year-bloomberg-philanthropies-commits-25-million-address-problem/
“
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that drowning claims the lives of more than 60,000 children under the age of five and more than 360,000 people globally. [Today] Michael R. Bloomberg, WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies, announced a $25 million expansion of Bloomberg Philanthropies’ global drowning prevention program at a convening of experts.”
“…Bloomberg Philanthropies will be working with several partners in this effort, including the World Health Organization, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and Synergos for implementation and monitoring through 2022. Bloomberg Philanthropies’ initial funding for drowning prevention also included support for the
WHO report -
Preventing drowning: an implementation guide. The
report, released [today], outlines the severity of drowning as a global crisis and presents a range of effective drowning prevention strategies and recommended measures to be taken by national and local governments….”
PS: In case you want some more evidence of the rather cozy relationship between M Chan & M Bloomberg (call it the “Maggie-Michael partnership)”, see this tweet: “
Commemorating his leadership in preventing NCDs and injuries, Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan has awarded @MikeBloomberg The @WHO Med” .
French presidential elections & global health/development impact
A few more reads:
ODI (blog) - Macron vs Le Pen: how the next French president will tackle international development
R Faure;
https://www.odi.org/comment/10510-macron-vs-le-pen-how-next-french-president-will-tackle-international-development
Guess you know what Faure is gonna say J.
Project Syndicate - Lessons from the Anti-Globalists
J Stiglitz;
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/macron-fight-against-populism-by-joseph-e--stiglitz-2017-05
(recommended) Even if a Macron win is rather likely, “…
it would be a mistake to conclude that discontent with the global economy – at least how it treats large numbers of those in (or formerly in) the middle class – has crested. If the developed liberal democracies maintain status quo policies, displaced workers will continue to be alienated. Many will feel that at least Trump, Le Pen, and their ilk profess to feel their pain. The idea that voters will turn against protectionism and populism of their own accord may be no more than cosmopolitan wishful thinking.”
“…the lesson should be obvious: In the absence of progressive policies, including strong social-welfare programs, job retraining, and other forms of assistance for individuals and communities left behind by globalization, Trumpian politicians may become a permanent feature of the landscape.”
Stiglitz points out Scandinavian countries understood “that the only sustainable prosperity is shared prosperity”. “It is a lesson that the US and the rest of Europe must now learn”. (or re-learn)
Trump & Obamacare repeal
Thursday was again a nail biting day for Rob Yates and many others. And it ended badly. A first major hurdle is taken for Trump et al. Let’s hope the Senate come at the rescue of Obamacare.
NYT - House Passes Measure to Repeal and Replace the Affordable Care Act
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/04/us/politics/health-care-bill-vote.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur&_r=0
“
The House on Thursday narrowly approved a bill to repeal and replace major parts of the Affordable Care Act, as Republicans recovered from their earlier failures and moved a step closer to delivering their promise to reshape American health care without mandated insurance coverage. The vote, 217-213, on President Trump’s 105th day in office, keeps alive the Republican dream to unwind the signature legislative achievement of former President Barack Obama. The House measure faces profound uncertainty in the Senate, where the legislation’s steep spending cuts will almost certainly be moderated. Any legislation that can get through the Senate will again have to clear the House and its conservative majority….” Still, this is Trump’s first major legislative win.
Republicans had spent much of the week tinkering with new proposals – with $ 8 billion to help cover people with pre-existing conditions playing a key role to convince some ‘moderate’ republicans (see
Vox -
The little tweak that's about to give Trump a big win on health care ); and the Donald himself had put in some of his notorious “deal making skills”, apparently (
humpf).
As
the FT put it, “…
Repealing and replacing Obamacare would help serve two ends — giving Mr Trump a much-desired victory and easing the way for tax reform.” Still, “success in the House on Thursday by no means guarantees the bill would become law because of Republican resistance in the Senate….”
As for the parties’ reaction, “
Republicans hailed the vote as a significant step towards scrapping Obamacare, which was one of the top issues for core Republican voters in the 2016 general election. But Democrats, who label the measure “Trumpcare”, said the new bill would raise premiums and force millions of Americans to lose health insurance. “Trumpcare is a billionaire’s tax cut disguised as a healthcare bill,” said Nancy Pelosi, the top Democrat in the House. “It is Robin Hood in reverse.””
See also the Guardian -
House Republicans pass healthcare bill in first step toward replacing Obamacare.
NYT – Pre-Existing Conditions: Evaluating Competing Claims
NYT;
Analysis of this specific (key) issue. “
In the debate over how the effort to replace the Affordable Care Act would affect those with pre-existing health conditions, opponents and supporters alike have offered misleading talking points. Faced with polling indicating public support for protections, and after an emotional appeal by the television host Jimmy Kimmel that has gone viral, Republicans are making a dubious case that their updated bill provides similar coverage for those who are less healthy, while Democrats are overstating claims about how many are affected.”
Vox – 4 winners and 4 losers from the Republican vote to replace Obamacare
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/5/4/15544238/acha-winners-losers-obamacare-plan
More analysis. Unsurprisingly, “rich people do well. Sick people don’t”.
And
Stat News -
CDC faces budget loss of hundreds of millions of dollars after AHCA passes House.
NYT – The Next Step for the Republican Health Care Bill: A Skeptical Senate
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/04/us/politics/senate-health-care-bill.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&smid=tw-nythealth&smtyp=cur&_r=0
“…
On the Senate side, where several Republicans have long been deeply skeptical of the House effort, the bill is expected to undergo sweeping changes that might leave it unrecognizable — perhaps stripping away some of the provisions that helped earn the support of hard-right House members and ultimately secure its passage….” Read the detail.
Trump & global health
Devex – Budget bill puts Congress in US aid driver's seat
https://www.devex.com/news/budget-bill-puts-congress-in-us-aid-driver-s-seat-90174
Some uplifting news from earlier this week. “Late Sunday night, the United States Congress agreed to a budget deal to fund the federal government for the remainder of the fiscal year and avoid a government shutdown. But the
spending plan also sent a reassuring message from lawmakers to the U.S. global development community, whose programs have been under threat from the Trump administration. Less than a week after a leaked document outlined massive cuts to U.S. foreign assistance under consideration by the White House,
the fiscal year 2017 omnibus deal
struck a reassuring tone about the future of U.S. global engagement. The trillion-plus dollar budget deal maintains spending for most foreign aid programs, includes additional funding for international famine relief, and requires the administration to consult with Congress before closing missions or restructuring departments.” Also the
scientific community was fairly happy (see Nature news) -
Congress gives National Institutes of Health a big boost and avoids cuts to research agencies sought by Trump..
The one-billion dollar question, though, in the words of our colleagues from
Global Health Now: “
Does this deal on the FY2017 budget represent a rejection (by Congress members, that is
) of Trump’s plans for massive cuts to NIH, EPA, NOAA and other agencies—or does it just reflect the desire to avoid a government shutdown?”
We’ll find out in the coming months, I guess….
KFF - Congress Releases FY17 Omnibus
http://kff.org/news-summary/congress-releases-fy17-omnibus/
The breakdown. “
On May 1, 2017, Congress released the FY 2017 Omnibus bill, which provides funding for the U.S. government through the rest of the fiscal year including for U.S. global health programs at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Department of State, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Total known* funding for U.S. global health programs in the FY 2017 Omnibus is $9.4 billion, which is approximately $235 million (2.6%) higher than the FY 2016 enacted level….”
CGD (blog) - Our First Peek at Trump’s Aid Budget: Big Changes, but Will Congress Play Along?
J Konyndyk;
https://www.cgdev.org/blog/our-first-peek-trumps-aid-budget-big-changes-will-congress-play-along
On the budget picture for 2018 then… (recommended) “
After months of speculation inside the foreign aid community, President Trump’s vision for development assistance is coming into clearer focus. Foreign Policy [this week] published a leaked copy of an Administration planning document on the FY2018 foreign aid budget request. The bottom line: less aid, done less effectively. Here are a few major takeaways from the document:…”
And a worrying tweet from
Laurie Garrett: “
Look at all these -100% budget cuts in global health in new FY2018 bipartisan budget - a travesty! (more coming)”
Politico - Trump's USAID pick stuck in the mud
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/01/trump-usaid-green-237845
“
Former GOP Rep. Mark Green is the Trump administration’s expected pick to lead the United States Agency for International Development, but has struggled to close a deal with the Trump administration, according to four sources with knowledge of the talks. For weeks, Green has been the sole candidate to lead USAID, the agency that sends help to foreign countries in times of disaster. In addition to trying to secure a title bump for himself, Green has been unable to get solid assurances that the agency won’t be gutted or devoured by the State Department during Trump’s tenure….”
Still, it seems very likely that he will lead USAID.
Foreign Policy – In Trumps plan to gut foreign aid, battles lines drawn over global women’s issues
http://foreignpolicy.com/2017/05/01/in-trumps-plan-to-gut-foreign-aid-battle-lines-drawn-over-global-womens-issues/
“Women’s issues remain a heated area for debate in Washington as the federal budget battle plays out. And there’s a
crucial office in the State Department now facing its own existential battle amid Trump’s plans to gut funding for foreign aid and diplomacy. Several congressional sources told Foreign Policy one of the sharpest disputes between Congress and the White House over the budget is the
proposed elimination of the ambassador-at-large for global women’s issues — a State Department posting that coordinates the U.S. government’s women’s development and empowerment programs around the world. Trump’s proposed foreign aid and development budget completely zeroes out the $8.25 million allotment for the ambassadorship, created by President Barack Obama in 2009….”
In related news,
U.S. Senators (31 of them) “Ask Trump To Stop Being Terrible For Women” In a letter “asking him to cease his ‘despicable attacks’ on women’s health and women’s rights”.
Finally, a few (recommended) links -
What would US cuts to the UN look like? (Brookings)
Foreign Policy -
Ivanka Trump wants to tackle the humanitarian crises her father ignores
“
Ivanka Trump’s White House resume will soon include famine and the Syrian humanitarian crisis. The First Daughter scheduled an unannounced meeting Thursday at the White House with
Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, to explore ways to address some of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, including looming famines from Somalia to Yemen and aid blockades in Syria.” The
State Department is not amused. “
The collaboration by two of the administration’s most influential women signaled an intent to raise the profile of American support for humanitarian relief around the world at a time when President Donald Trump’s budget advisors have been calling for steep financial cuts in foreign aid. The initiative provides a counterpoint to the “America First” approach advocated by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who has expressed little interest in promoting human rights around the world or making humanitarian relief an American foreign policy priority. In fact, Tillerson has routinely declined to meet, or cancelled scheduled meetings, with the heads of U.N. relief agencies, including Filippo Grandi, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.”
Coming up – 70th World Health Assembly (22-31 May)
http://apps.who.int/gb/gov/
You already know that the first few days of this WHA will be dominated by Nabarro, Nishtar & Tedros (see above).
For the
Preliminary journal see
http://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/WHA70/A70_JourP-en.pdf
Background documents :
http://apps.who.int/gb/e/e_wha70.html
Some reads, links & events already related to the upcoming WHA:
IP-Watch -
WHO Members Urged To Support Resolution Delinking Cancer Drug Prices From R&D Costs “
A group of civil society organisations and health experts have sent a letter to delegates to this month’s annual World Health Assembly urging support for a study on the delinkage of the costs of research and development from the prices of cancer medicines. Member states reportedly met on the issue today and are still undecided.”
A tweet from
Charles Clift related to the
Report of the Independent Oversight and Advisory Committee for the WHO Health Emergencies Programme (on its conclusion):
“
#WHA70 Nice summary of where WHO is at with its emergencies programme. Some progress but many challenges. “
The conclusion in full: “
WHO is making efforts at all levels to transform itself into an operational organization in emergencies. Since the launch of the WHE Programme, progress has been noticed in emergency response at country level, with consistently positive feedback on WHO’s expanded role in humanitarian crises. WHO is demonstrating that it can be a reliable and competent partner to governments, organizations in the United Nations system, health cluster partners, implementing nongovernmental organizations and the donor community. However, progress is fragile. WHO’s administrative systems and business processes are not effectively supporting its operations, and the WHE Programme is struggling with a funding shortage. Cultural constraints on the emergency response throughout the Organization remain the main challenge for adopting a “no regrets” policy in practice. The Organization must ensure that the WHE Programme can fulfil its potential. Ensuring this success is ultimately a shared responsibility between Member States, WHO’s partners and the Secretariat.”
( PS: for more on this Committee, see
Independent Oversight and Advisory Committee for the WHO Health Emergencies Programme )
South Centre reports on outcomes of the WHO 140th Executive Board that will impact key decisions of the World Health Assembly in May
http://mailchi.mp/southcentre/southnews-non-aligned-movement-and-bandung-principles-as-relevant-today-as-ever-south-centre-222453
“…the South Centre has prepared a timely summary report in the form of a policy brief of the discussions that took place at the EB, to assist delegates and other stakeholders in their preparation for the discussions in the WHA. The 140th session of the EB of the WHO took place from 23 January – 1 February 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland.”
For the
policy brief (10 pager), see
https://www.southcentre.int/policy-brief-39-may-2017/
Last but not least, do also have a look on the website of the
Geneva Global Health Hub -
http://g2h2.org/ (including for other events in the sidelines of the WHA, civil society meetings, etc)
HSG (blog) – The next twenty years of health policy and systems research
By
Kumanan Rasanathan, HSG Board Member ;
HSG;
(recommended) K Rasanathan highlights
two big issues that came up during the meeting last week in Stockholm to celebrate the 20 years since the launch of the Alliance of Health Policy and Systems research. As you recall from last week’s IHP news, this meeting “also launched the
first World Report on Health Policy and Systems Research, a comprehensive document on the current status of HPSR – an essential read for everyone in HSG. “
The issues Rasanathan focuses on are: (1) In 2017 is health policy and systems research truly a global enterprise, or something for “LMIC”? (2) How do we better engage policy-makers in HPSR?
He then looks ahead to the next 20 years in HPSR.
In other HPSR related news, check out this
nice film from HSG and the Alliance advocating for HPSR (about 10 mins). “…
The new film highlights the crucial roles that the generation and use of health policy and systems research (HPSR) plays. It shows how HPSR informs and guides the development of policies and the implementation of interventions for stronger and more equitable health systems around the world. This short film is intended for interested members of the public, media, donors, NGOs, and for those teaching and learning about health policy and systems, as well as an advocacy tool to be used by members of the HPSR community.”
G20 & Global Health
As you know, the
G20 Ministers of Health meeting will take place in Berlin (May 19-20).
Preparations & advocacy related to this meeting are ongoing. A few reads & events coming up:
AP – Top health officials to simulate disease outbreak response
https://www.apnews.com/036d27bea22f49da8232c15922d55b71/Top-health-officials-to-simulate-disease-outbreak-response
“
Top health officials from the 20 leading and emerging economies are planning to simulate their response to a possible global disease outbreak. A memo on the May 19-20 summit in Berlin states the meeting will include a four-hour “tabletop exercise” involving ministers and representatives from international organizations. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the memo on Tuesday.”
Guardian - G20 must invest to deal with pandemics
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/apr/27/g20-must-invest-to-deal-with-pandemics
Late last week, an Alliance of medical charities and institutions called upon the G20 to invest long term in pandemic preparedness, poverty related and neglected diseases and AMR. Among the ones who signed this letter: The Sabin Vaccine Institute, Sovereign Strategy, PATH, Medicines for
MalariaVenture (MMV), the TB Alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Coalitions (CEPI) UNITAID, CARB-X, the Global Health Technologies Coalition (GHTC) and the Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT).
For more coverage, see
Devex -
'Call to action' for G20 health ministers ahead of Berlin meeting
And a tweet:
“Important that pandemic preparedness stays on the #G20 agenda, CEPI CEO Richard Hatchett says
#Innovate4Health. ”
B20 Health Conference
https://www.b20germany.org/program/event-details/details/b20-health-conference/
“
The B20 Health Initiative aims at providing an exchange platform between the global health care industry, governments, international organizations and civil society to jointly drive change towards innovative health systems. On May, 18th, 2017 the B20 Health Initiative hosts the B20 Health Conference: Resilient Health Systems – Shaping the Future of Health Care Together. In accordance with the B20 Germany motto, the B20 Health Conference focusses on the role global businesses can play in delivering resilient, responsible and responsive health systems. At the conference, the final communiqué of the B20 Health Initiative will officially be handed over to a representative of the G20 Health Minister.”
Safeguarding Health in Conflict Coalition (Report) - Impunity must end
https://www.safeguardinghealth.org/sites/shcc/files/SHCC2017final.pdf
“
Intense violence against health workers persisted in 2016—and accountability for the attacks remains inadequate or non-existent, according to a new report released today by the Safeguarding Health in Conflict Coalition. Released to mark the 1-year anniversary of the UN Security Council’s adoption of Resolution 2286, which aimed to protect health in conflict, “Impunity Must End” documents attacks on health care in 23 countries.”
For coverage of this report, see for example
Devex -
'Staggering' number of attacks on health care workers reported in 2016
Civil society engages with UHC2030 to help build the movement
https://www.internationalhealthpartnership.net/en/news-videos/ihp-news/article/civil-society-engages-with-uhc2030-to-help-build-the-movement-409929/
The game is on. “
As part of transforming IHP+ into UHC2030, CSOs are playing a critical role in building their constituency for a strong equity-focused and people-led movement for UHC. Through a broad consultative process, CSOs have set up the Civil Society Engagement Mechanism (CSEM) of UHC2030 to represent their constituency. An interim group of CSOs with an interim secretariat will operate until December 2017 when the CSEM will become fully operational. Right now, there is a call for CSO representative nominations for UHC 2030. The CSEM wants to strengthen a broad and inclusive UHC movement, which can influence policy design and implementation and facilitate citizen-led accountability. The aim is to build strong CSO voices and contribute significantly to UHC2030, ensuring systematic attention is paid to the needs of the most marginalised and vulnerable populations so that ‘no one is left behind’. “Through the UHC2030 CSEM, we are able to deliver stronger advocacy for UHC in Africa,” said Mr Itai Rusike, Executive Director of Community Working Group on Health (CWGH) and Coordinator of the African Platform for UHC. …”
Legacy of Margaret Chan series – Ten years in public health
http://www.who.int/publications/10-year-review/en/
By now, many more chapters were added in this nice series. Do have a look, for example at ‘A global health guardian: climate change, air pollution and antimicrobial resistance’; ‘health security: is the world better prepared?’; or ‘
NCDs: the slow motion disaster’.
(
Maybe we should add Trump to the list of NCDs –
or at least to the list of NCD risk factors J )
WHO Bulletin – May issue
http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/95/5/en/
Check out the
Editorials first -
Time for a global response to labour rights violations in the manufacture of health-care goods & certainly
Tuberculosis and antimicrobial resistance – new models of research (which zooms in on the
3P Project):
“… Several nongovernmental organizations, medical research councils, civil society representatives and the South African government have recently developed a new funding framework to support research and development of tuberculosis treatments – the 3P Project (pull, pool and push). This initiative (i) uses a pull incentive, by rewarding research through prizes; (ii) pools intellectual property and data; and (iii) uses push incentives through research grants.7 The 3P project is a collaborative research initiative that aims to support the discovery and development of a one-month treatment regimen that can be used to cure all cases of tuberculosis. …”
Make sure you also check out the Policy article – “
Tobacco growing and the sustainable development goals, Malawi”.
PS: “
Understanding and measuring quality of care: dealing with complexity” (by J Hanefeld et al) was already flagged when it appeared online. Must-read.
World Press Freedom day – 3 May
A
strong, independent, pluralistic &
free press is vital for public health. Agnes Soucat noted last week (in a tweet),that the pendulum doesn’t seem to be going in the right direction, unfortunately.
UN expert urges governments to end “demonization” of critical media and protect journalists
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=21557&LangID=E
“Speaking ahead of World Press Freedom Day, the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, David Kaye, who was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council to monitor freedom of the media and the safety of journalists globally, released this statement: …”
In 'post truth' era, leaders must defend objective, independent media, UN says on Press Freedom Day
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=56672#.WQtWV1WLTIV
“
In a “post-truth” world with “fake news” on the rise, and media accountability and credibility falling under question, free, independent and professional journalism has never been more important, the United Nations today said. “We need leaders to defend a free media. This is crucial to counter prevailing misinformation. And we need everyone to stand for our right to truth,” Secretary-General António Guterres said in a message to mark World Press Freedom Day. This year's theme highlights media's role in advancing peaceful, just and inclusive societies and builds on the theme 'Critical Minds for Critical Times.'”
AMR update
The
1st meeting of the Interagency Coordination Group on AMR global policy took place this week.
A key read related to AMR, meanwhile, on the
language problem of antibiotic resistance :
Stat News – Don’t call it a ‘war on superbugs’: Experts call for new ways to talk about crisis
https://www.statnews.com/2017/05/03/superbugs-war-langugae/
Language matters, also in the AMR fight. “
Don’t call it a war on superbugs. That’s the latest advice from international public health experts who have been watching with alarm as bacteria and fungi that cause disease have become ever more adept at evading the drugs we deploy against them. The vocabulary we use to debate what to do about this rising resistance is so confusing that it may actually be an obstacle to success, the experts argued in a commentary published Wednesday in the journal Nature.
They’re urging a new UN group established to coordinate the fight against drug resistance to come up with a common and easily understandable lexicon for the problem.”
For the piece in
Nature, see
here. “
A failure to use words clearly undermines the global response to antimicrobials' waning usefulness. Standardize terminology, urge Marc Mendelson and colleagues.”
Global Social Policy - Global health policy in Sustainable Development goals
M Koivusalo;
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1468018117703442
Must-read!! “
SDGs represent global policy goals in contrast to MDGs, which had developmental focus. This is the global potential of SDGs for global health policy. However, the large number of goals bear the risk of prioritisation between different goals and broad global frameworks and specific targets may not be useful in shaping policy guidance and global approaches in policy areas, where we already have a global institutional and normative presence. In contrast to some other global social policy areas, global health policy has also something to lose. SDGs are thus likely to be better for global health in other policies, than for global health policy priorities, institutions and practice. This is a particular concern for the global health policy role of the World Health Organisation, global health policies seeking normative action as well as for such health policy priorities, which contrast or conflict with other policy areas or strong corporate interests. This has particular relevance to multistakeholder partnerships and the role of private sector in implementation of SDGs.”
One of the paragraphs that struck us (in the section on SDGs & global governance of health): “ …
The role of the WHO can also become more marginalized in the process as the SDGs are governed under the United Nations (UN) and ministries of foreign affairs rather than ministries of social affairs and health. In global health policy, the poor financing situation of the WHO is already putting its existing responsibilities in danger, including with respect to coordination and antimicrobial resistance (Chan, 2016). As the SDGs are shared goals with many international agencies and stakeholders, it is likely that funding for health will become channeled through several routes. Thus, the strong presence of health-related goals might be good for health in other policies, but not necessarily for the WHO…”
Health Affairs - Vast Majority Of Development Assistance For Health Funds Target Those Below Age Sixty
http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/36/5/926.full
By
J Dieleman et al. Not much of a surprise perhaps.
Huffington Post – Bill Gates Won’t Save You From The Next Ebola: The Gates Foundation says responding to deadly outbreaks isn’t its forte. But the Ebola crisis showed just how much global public health depends on the foundation.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ebola-gates-foundation-public-health_us_5900a8c5e4b0026db1dd15e6?ncid=engmodushpmg00000004
Investigative journalism at its best. The
Ebola Epidemic response provided an example of the global health influence of the Gates foundation. Do read it for yourself. And check in the process how Tom Frieden gets in touch with Bill Gates – via Chris Elias.
In other Ebola related news (see
STAT news), this week
WHO Director-General Margaret Chan was in Conakry, Guinea, with leaders from that country, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. They recognized the people who helped bring the West African Ebola outbreak under control and those who have been at work developing a vaccine for Ebola.
For
Chan’s opening address there, see WHO -
Opening remarks at the Ebola vaccines for Guinea and the world event Among others, she referred to CEPI.
WHO – WHO to begin pilot prequalification of biosimilars for cancer treatment
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2017/pilot-prequalification-biosimilars/en/
“
This year WHO will launch a pilot project for prequalifying biosimilar medicines, a step towards making some of the most expensive treatments for cancer more widely available in low- and middle-income countries. In September, WHO will invite manufacturers to submit applications for prequalification of biosimilar versions of two products in the WHO Essential Medicines List: rituximab (used principally to treat non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia), and trastuzumab (used to treat breast cancer). The decision comes after a two-day meeting in Geneva between WHO, national regulators, pharmaceutical industry groups, patient and civil society groups, payers and policymakers to discuss ways to increase access to biotherapeutic medicines. WHO also plans to explore options for prequalifying insulin.
Biotherapeutic medicines, which are produced from biological sources such as cells rather than synthesised chemicals, are important treatments for some cancers and other non-communicable diseases. Like generic medicines, biosimilars can be much less expensive versions of innovator biotherapeutics. They are usually manufactured by other companies once the patent on the original product has expired. As the patents of some biotherapeutics have expired, more biosimilars are being produced. Like generic medicines, biosimilars could help to increase access to treatment in lower-resourced countries and provide a solution to escalating health costs in high-income countries….”
For coverage, see
Reuters -
WHO to help bring cheap biosimilar cancer drugs to poor.
Global Fund update
Global Fund - Global Fund Board Selects New Chair and Vice-Chair
https://www.theglobalfund.org/en/news/2017-05-03-global-fund-board-selects-new-chair-and-vice-chair/
News from Kigali then. “
The Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria selected Aida Kurtović as its new Chair, after serving as Vice-Chair for the past two years. The Board also selected Ambassador John Simon as incoming Vice-Chair. Kurtović, who is from Bosnia and Herzegovina, was selected for a two-year term during a Board meeting that is being hosted by the government of Rwanda.”
“
Opening the board meeting Wednesday morning, Rwandan President Paul Kagame stressed the importance of strengthening systems of health, of orienting all financial support around a country's strategic plan for health, and of long-term improvement through constant learning. “
Global Fund – Global Fund Accelerates Efforts To End Epidemics
https://www.theglobalfund.org/en/news/2017-05-04-global-fund-accelerates-efforts-to-end-epidemics/
Short report of the 37
th Board meeting in Kigali (with among others Mark Dybul’s final address to the Board). (must-read)
As for the
GF Board’s decision points, see
here.
HIV/AIDS
Plos Med– Towards control of the global HIV epidemic: Addressing the middle-90 challenge in the UNAIDS 90–90–90 target
http://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1002293
“In a Perspective, Collins Iwuji and Marie-Louise Newell discuss early findings from
Richard Hayes and colleagues' PopART study on HIV testing and treatment.”
UNAIDS – Global Review panel encourages UNAIDS to build on its strengths
http://www.unaids.org/en/resources/presscentre/featurestories/2017/may/20170501_refining-reinforcing-unaids
“
The Global Review Panel on the Future of the UNAIDS Joint Programme Model has issued its final report, Refining and reinforcing the UNAIDS Joint Programme Model, which offers guidance on ways the Joint Programme can step up efforts to deliver more results for people living with and affected by HIV.”
Malaria
Bloomberg - DNA Fingerprinting Throws Doubt on Glaxo Malaria Vaccine Effort
Bloomberg;
“ Groundbreaking research has shown the potentially deadly malaria parasite has greater genetic diversity than scientists previously understood, a finding that throws doubt on the efficacy of vaccines in development by companies such GlaxoSmithKline Plc. A study involving more than 600 children from a single village in the West African nation of Gabon found that each had malaria caused by a different strain of the Plasmodium parasite -- or a different composite of as many as 60 genes. The research, published Tuesday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is the first to rely on DNA fingerprinting to show how malaria’s genetic diversity enables it to evade the human immune system and establish a chronic infection….”
In related news, you might also want to read this week’s
Lancet Editorial - The next chapter in malaria eradication which dwells on the pilots of RTS,S in 3 African countries. The edito concludes:
“Cautious optimism is understandable, but it must be emphasised that the vaccine is but one additional tool in the current limited armamentarium for making progress against malaria. Adequate support and scrupulous monitoring will determine whether the pilot programme is a success or a cautionary tale.”
Richard Smith – Must doctors believe in progress?
BMJ;
Lovely blog.
Excerpts: “…
The Sustainable Development Goals are an embodiment of the religion of Progress; its Ten Commandments. Preventable deaths will not occur. Poverty will disappear. All children will be educated. We in rich countries will live as well as now if not better, and the other six billion people will live as well as we do now but all in a way that will put no strain on the planet. There will be universal healthcare coverage. The very existence of medical journals like The BMJ and Lancet implies a belief in progress…. ”
Smith has a soft spot for John Gray: “…
John Gray is the philosopher who is sceptical about progress. He concedes that science is progressive in that we steadily understand more and will not revert to suddenly understanding less. He would not concede, however, that the social and political consequences of science will be beneficial. It’s science that has allowed us to overheat the planet, build bombs that could wipe out the species, and create machines that might replace us. His argument is that if you look back at history, what seems like progress—like the growth of democracy or the liberation of women—can be rapidly reversed.
And concludes
: “Progress is not inevitable and is a religion. But as a politician, doctor, research scientist, or public official you’d better believe.”
WEF’s Africa Summit in Durban
Oxfam – African poverty far worse than thought‚ says Oxfam
http://www.heraldlive.co.za/news/2017/05/03/african-poverty-far-worse-thought-says-oxfam/
“In the past two decades‚ Africa’s rich have benefited immensely from unprecedented economic growth‚ while there are more citizens living in poverty than ever before. Social justice organisation Oxfam on Tuesday released a new report titled “Starting with people”‚ which details the crisis facing Africa’s poor and issues a challenge to African leaders “to champion new economic models”. “New data reveals Africa’s inequality crisis is greater than feared‚” Oxfam said in a statement accompanying the release of the report‚ just a day before the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa‚ which will be hosted in Durban from Wednesday to Friday. “African leaders must build a new more ‘human economy’ to tackle inequality and poverty. The WEF will bring political and business leaders together from across the continent to discuss how to achieve inclusive growth.””
Devex - Should Africa 'hurry up and wait' amid development crisis?
https://www.devex.com/news/should-africa-hurry-up-and-wait-amid-development-crisis-90184
Another interesting analysis published ahead of the
World Economic Forum’s Africa summit in Durban.
Excerpts: “…
Another big theme for the delegates gathered in Durban is how to finance the Sustainable Development Goals for African nations. As major donors face nationalist backlashes at home, more focus is being placed on mobilizing private sector investment in infrastructure, health systems and education. The money is certainly available — languishing in pension funds and insurance companies in a low interest rate environment — but can more African countries create the kinds of investment environments that will attract this risk-averse capital? The world's development finance institutions, in particular the World Bank, are focused on this "billions to trillions" agenda, but many countries in the region are a long way from being able to attract significant amounts of private capital for their development.
… Of course, domestic resource mobilization is an important topic too — for example, the African Union receives only 1 percent of its budget from African member states — but improving tax systems and generating the political will to increase funding for education and health care is not straightforward in many places. ….”
PHFI predicament
Lancet World report –Concern over India’s move to cut funds for PHFI
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)31198-4/fulltext
(must-read for the HPSR community )“
A cancellation notice from the government to prevent the Public Health Foundation of India from receiving funding from foreign donors raises concerns. Dinesh C Sharma reports.”
Excerpt: “…
The MHA action comes in the wake of a heightened vigil against foreign funding of civil society in the past few years. The ministry and its intelligence wing have been monitoring the flow of foreign funds in certain sectors. FCRA licences of 20 000 societies and voluntary agencies were cancelled for various reasons up to December, last year. The list includes Greenpeace India, the Lawyers Collective—an HIV and TB patients' rights based in New Delhi—and Institute of Public Health, Bengaluru, an anti-tobacco group. “Those who are seen to be against the present government are facing the attack on FCRA front. The purpose appears to be to silence different views and channel the funds to pro-government NGOs”, Anand Grover of the Lawyers Collective told The Lancet.”
“With the latest action under FCRA, the role of foreign funding in health sector is coming into focus. …”
The report concludes
: “…As an immediate measure, PHFI has decided to freeze several of its ongoing projects funded by agencies including US NIH, DFID, the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust, USAID and BMGF. The course it takes will depend on the decision of the Prime Minister's Office which is currently examining the dispute.
Lancet (Correspondence) – Who is responsible for the health care of refugees?
Q Syed et al ;
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)31159-5/fulltext
The authors share in this Correspondence their reflections from their involvement in a medical mission in Greece, and highlight the need for global collaboration to improve health care for refugees.
They conclude: “
Refugee health is a public health crisis of this century and a stronger collaboration of the global community, including private organisations such as the Clinton Health Access Initiative and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is needed in the same way that these resources have been effectively used to fight global epidemics such as poliomyelitis and HIV/AIDS.”
Japan Times - Japan and U.S. pledge to play leading role in global health
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/05/04/national/science-health/japan-u-s-pledge-play-leading-role-global-health/#.WQs_SlXyjIX
“
Japan and the United States agreed Wednesday to take a leadership role in global health, including the fight against infectious diseases, according to Japan’s health minister. “We agreed that Japan and the United States cooperate in the event of health crises and take a leadership role in global health,” Yasuhisa Shiozaki, the minister of health, labor and welfare, told reporters after meeting with U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price in Washington. As part of efforts to promote such partnership, the two ministers signed a memorandum of cooperation between the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services….”
Science Speaks – Future of global health funding uncertain during time of great need, panelists say
http://sciencespeaksblog.org/2017/05/03/future-of-global-health-funding-uncertain-during-time-of-great-need-panelists-say/
On a recent KFF panel on the future of global health financing with the likes of Joseph Dieleman, C Murray & Tim Evans. Certainly worth a read. “…
A “pretty dystopian vision” lies ahead for three-quarters of a billion people who will reside in low-income countries by 2040, Steve Morrison of the Center for Strategic and International Studies said, if development assistance for health further decreases.” Now where are these chaps from a ‘Grand convergence by 2035’… ?
JEE Alliance - WHO IHR Country Capacity Monitoring and Evaluation Newsletter
https://www.jeealliance.org/uutiset/who-ihr-country-capacity-monitoring-and-evaluation-newsletter-42017/
“
The World Health Organization’s monthly newsletter on the IHR (2005) Monitoring and Evaluation Framework is produced by the WHO Country Health Emergency Preparedness and IHR (CPI) Department of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme. The April newsletter contains timely information on the assessment of capacities at the human animal interface in Mauritania (27 – 31 March), the meeting of the national IHR Focal Points in the Eastern Mediterranean region (6 – 8 April), and the WHO Technical Review Meeting (19 – 21 April). Professor Abderrahmane Maaroufi, Director of Epidemiology and Disease Control in the Morocco Ministry of Health, presents his views on the IHR Monitoring and Evaluation Framework.
The newsletter also informs about the work of WHO and the World Bank on developing a tool for financing preparedness and the new publication A Strategic Framework for Emergency Preparedness.” For the latter, see
A strategic framework for emergency preparedness.
As for the short section with
info on this tool for financing preparedness: ““
WHO is working with the World Bank to develop a tool for financing preparedness. Delegations from WHO’s Regional Office for the Western Pacific Region (WPRO), WHO country Office in Vietnam and WHO headquarters (HQ) are attending a meeting on 27-28 April 2017, in Da Nang, Vietnam, to review and discuss the draft of the Health Security Financing and Institutional Assessment Tool (HSFAT) and its implementation in countries. Participants will also review the indicators on financing to be included in the JEE tool.”
In related JEE news, a tweet perhaps: “
Dr Stella Chungong @WHO presents #JEE health security financing indicator proposal developed together with @WBG_Health @JEEAlliance “
Global Financial Integrity (report)
http://www.gfintegrity.org/issue/illicit-financial-flows/
See
New Study: Illicit Financial Flows in Developing Countries Large and Persistent. “
Illicit financial flows (IFFs) from developing and emerging economies kept pace at nearly US$1 trillion in 2014, according to a
study released [today] by Global Financial Integrity (GFI), a Washington, DC-based research and advisory organization. The report pegs illicit financial outflows at 4.2-6.6 percent of developing country total trade in 2014, the last year for which comprehensive data are available.”
MMS Bulletin – Health cooperation in fragile contexts
http://www.medicusmundi.ch/en/bulletin/mms-bulletin/health-cooperation-in-fragile-contexts?set_language=en
See the
editorial in this issue: “
A growing number of countries are experiencing fragile contexts where the general environment is marked by instability, weak public institutions and infrastructures and by a lack of the rule of law. International health organisations are being increasingly required to work in such contexts. This poses great challenges to acting in the appropriate manner, alleviating suffering, providing the required healthcare and setting up health structures without adding to a further destabilisation of public institutions and thus to fragility and instability. Building upon an earlier conference on “Health in Fragile Contexts” (August 2016), the MMS Symposium in November 2016 drew upon the many lessons learnt and facilitated networking and mutual learning – about a topic which does not provide easy solutions.”
IISD - FfD Forum Co-facilitators Circulate Zero Draft
http://sdg.iisd.org/news/ffd-forum-co-facilitators-circulate-zero-draft/
“
Negotiations on the outcome of the ECOSOC’s second Financing For Development Follow-up Forum will begin on 2 May. The co-facilitators (Belgium and South Africa) circulated the zero draft following a series of informal consultations.”
“
The 2017 FfD Forum will convene from 22-25 May 2017, in New York, US. The Forum is mandated by the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA) to produce intergovernmentally agreed conclusions and recommendations, which feed into the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development’s (HLPF) follow-up and review of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The FfD Forum is held annually at the UN Headquarters in New York with universal intergovernmental participation. It identifies obstacles and challenges to the implementation of the FfD outcomes and the delivery of the means of implementation (MOIs) of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also promotes the sharing of lessons learned from experiences at the national and regional levels, addresses new and emerging topics of relevance and provides policy recommendations for action by the international community.” Have a look at what’s in the zero draft.
PS: the
High-Level Political Forum 2017 itself is scheduled for July. See
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/hlpf for all info.
(updated) Tier classification for SDG indicators
https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/files/Tier%20Classification%20of%20SDG%20Indicators_20%20April%202017_web.pdf
See also
here.
“…the updated tier classification as of 19 April 2017 for the Global SDG indicators as developed by the IAEG-SDGs. The tier classification for many indicators is expected to change as methodologies are developed and data availability increases. Therefore, the IAEG-SDGs has developed a mechanism to annually review the tier classification at its Fall (or 4th quarter) meetings. The updated tier classification is expected to be released following those meetings unless otherwise noted. … … As of 19 April 2017: The updated tier classification contains 82 Tier I indicators, 61 Tier II indicators and 84 Tier III indicators. In addition to these, there are 5 indicators that have multiple tiers (different components of the indicator are classified into different tiers).”
CGD (working paper) – Ethnic Politics and Ebola Response in West Africa - Working Paper 453
S Soumahoro;
https://www.cgdev.org/publication/ethnic-politics-and-ebola-response-west-africa
“
In this paper, I examine the effects of power sharing on vulnerability to adverse shocks in a multiethnic setting. Combining a unique dataset on the allocation of ministerial posts across ethnicities with the spatial distribution of Ebola, I provide evidence that ethnic representation mitigated the transmission of Ebola in Guinea and Sierra Leone. The findings suggest that one percentage point increase in proportional cabinet shares reduced Ebola transmission by five percent, as reflected in the total number of confirmed cases. I also provide suggestive evidence that this relationship goes beyond a simple correlation and operates through public resource capture and trust in political institutions.”
UNAIDS: China-Africa partnership to improve access to care
http://www.unaids.org/en/resources/presscentre/featurestories/2017/april/20170428_China-Africa
Sidibé shrewdly links the CHW agenda to the Chinese barefoot doctors.
(see also last week’s IHP news) “
China and Africa have come together to find new ways of improving access to health care. More than 30 Ministers of Health from across Africa joined the Vice-Premier of China Liu Yandong, and the Chinese Minister of National Health and Family Planning Commission Li Bin at the China-Africa Ministerial Conference on Health Cooperation. The event was held in Pretoria, South Africa on April 24 under the theme China-Africa Health Cooperation, From Commitments to Actions. … … In his address, the UNAIDS Executive Director, Michel Sidibé, outlined three critical initiatives that need to be put in place. He said that, together with the African Union, partners should create a workforce of 2 million community health workers for Africa, learning from the Barefoot Doctors of China organization, which trains people on basic medicine to work in rural areas of China. Trilateral cooperation between China, Africa and UNAIDS should focus on disease surveillance for accelerating action to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3. He added that UNAIDS will continue to support the scale-up of the local production of medicines and health commodities.
Following his speech, participants signed a five-point plan for China–Africa cooperation on health which focuses on improving access to health-care services through Chinese medical teams working in Africa and by strengthening public health preparedness and capacity-building, particularly through the African Centre for Disease Control. The plan also includes a special focus on key populations, women and young people and urges an increase in training opportunities for African and Chinese people. Increasing China–Africa cooperation, specifically around accelerated action for technology and local production, is also part of the plan….”
Devex – Experts disagree on whether Europe can fill gap left by US aid cuts
https://www.devex.com/news/experts-disagree-on-whether-europe-can-fill-gap-left-by-us-aid-cuts-90157
I side with the pessimists. (No surprises there, you’ll say. )
Science – Syria, slums, and health security
Seth Berkley;
Science;
Health security needs to pay more attention to people in slums, argues Seth Berkley. “
The risk of epidemics of deadly infectious disease is elevated by millions of vulnerable people converging on and taking refuge in urban areas. Large numbers of unvaccinated people living in close proximity and with limited access to clean water and sanitation represent a fertile breeding ground for infectious disease—traditional pathogens, and new and emerging ones—and the spread of antimicrobial resistance. Urban slums are not new, but the scale and prevalence we are seeing is. We are ill-prepared for their rate of growth, and the associated increase in risk of infectious outbreaks….” And they seem hard to reach, these people in slums.
Devex - UK aid organizations fall silent ahead of the election
https://www.devex.com/news/uk-aid-organizations-fall-silent-ahead-of-the-election-90160
Fortunately, Martin McKee is still alive and kicking on Twitter, taking on Theresa May and gang all by himself!
Devex – Q&A: Abdelmoneim on how Ebola and armed conflict are changing MSF
https://www.devex.com/news/q-a-abdelmoneim-on-how-ebola-and-armed-conflict-are-changing-msf-90153
MSF staff, among others, might want to read this interview with an MSF board member and how the organization tries to deal with its rising global health policy influence. “
Ebola unmistakably changed global health, revealing gross failings and recasting the roles of a host of aid groups, agencies and community first responders. That reckoning also happened on an organization-wide level, including at Médecins Sans Frontières, which was a leader in on-the-ground treatment during the crisis and an outspoken critic of the broader response. After leading much of the response and outcry on Ebola, MSF found itself with a newly-influential voice in the public health community. Now, the organization is grappling with how to take a seat at the global policymaking table while keeping its identity as a fiercely independent emergency responder. The question carries ever greater weight as MSF sits at the center not just of outbreak response but of growing health crises in conflict zones across the globe. In Syria, Yemen and Afghanistan, the organization’s facilities have been attacked or bombed in violation of international humanitarian law, or IHL. So great is the threat that MSF is now rethinking the risks it faces and asking warring parties directly what their rules of engagement are, if they do not abide by IHL. MSF board member Dr. Javid Abdelmoneim has been at the heart of MSF’s rising prominence in international health policy. He was part of a team working on the ground to respond to Ebola in Sierra Leone, and helped set up a support network for doctors inside Syria, where MSF is unable to send its own personnel. He spoke to Devex during a visit to the United Arab Emirates. …”
AP - Tillerson calls for balancing US security interests, values
https://www.apnews.com/7afff2131d7b4b10b2c84b89c721b6c9?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=AP_Politics
You probably already noticed in recent months, but now it’s also official,
human rights and the US don’t rhyme very well anymore. (PS: some of you might say “what’s new, though”?)
“…Translating "America First" into diplomatic policy, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday declared the United States can't always afford to condition its foreign relationships and national security efforts on countries adopting U.S. values like human rights. He spoke to a State Department eager for answers about changing priorities and a sweeping, impending overhaul. … … The former Exxon Mobil CEO distinguished between U.S. "values," which he described as enduring, and "policies," which Tillerson said must adapt to the times. … … "In some circumstances, if you condition our national security efforts on someone adopting our values, we probably can't achieve our national security goals," Tillerson said. "It really creates obstacles to our ability to advance our national security interests, our economic interests." Still, he insisted the U.S. won't abandon core values.”
Devex – Neglected tropical diseases: Funding the next stage of the fight
https://www.devex.com/news/neglected-tropical-diseases-funding-the-next-stage-of-the-fight-90176
Well worth a read. “
The recent NTDs Summit in Geneva, Switzerland, highlighted the massive strides that have been made against neglected tropical diseases over the past five years with relatively small sums of money. … … Foreign aid for NTDs amounted to about $200 million to $300 million a year between 2012 and 2014, according to a report from the World Health Organization. “A relatively small amount of financing is needed to have big impact on NTDs,” Christopher Fitzpatrick, a health economist for the WHO, said at the summit. Yet delegates also highlighted that while NTDs are considered one of the best buys in public health, they continue to be underfunded, and remain largely dependent on donors.
More of the much-needed resources for the next stage of the fight — which in 2015 the WHO estimated at $750 million a year up to 2020, and $460 million a year thereafter —
must come from national governments and innovative financing, they said….”
IHP for UHC 2030 – Monitoring effective development cooperation in health has benefits in DRC and Vietnam
https://www.internationalhealthpartnership.net/en/news-videos/ihp-news/article/monitoring-effective-development-cooperation-in-health-has-benefits-in-drc-and-vietnam-409930/
“
In 2016, thirty countries participated in the IHP+ exercise to monitor effective development cooperation (EDC) in health. Findings are being discussed at multi-stakeholder meetings at country level and there are now results from 16 countries published online…. ” “Positive multi-stakeholder relationships and changes in health policy have occurred as a result of the IHP+ monitoring exercise.”
Economist - A growing share of aid is spent by private firms, not charities
http://www.economist.com/news/international/21721635-they-need-diversify-growing-share-aid-spent-private-firms-not-charities
But they need to diversify, this Economist article says.
Quick links:
FT Health -
Ping An to launch $1bn fintech and healthcare fund
“
Ping An is launching a $1bn fund to invest in financial and healthcare technology globally in a sign of the Chinese insurance group’s desire to expand its brand and business outside its home market.”
FT Health newsletter (later today) – “
Interview with Prof Agnes Binagwaho about Rwanda's University of Global Health Equity.” You can sign up for this newsletter here:
https://www.ft.com/companies/health