On 7 April 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) marks its 75th anniversary, along with its 194 Member States and other partners, by calling for a renewed drive for health equity, IPN reports, quoting a press release.
Seventy-five years ago, in the aftermath of the deadliest and most destructive war in human history, the Constitution of the World Health Organization came into force: a treaty between the nations of the world, who recognized that health was not only a fundamental human right, but also fundamental to peace and security. Since 1948, World Health Day has been celebrated. In 2023, the theme of this day is “Health for All”.
Over the past seven and a half decades, there has been extraordinary progress in protecting people from diseases and destruction, including smallpox eradication, reducing the incidence of polio by 99%, saving millions of lives through childhood immunization, declines in maternal mortality and improving health and well-being for millions more.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said the history of WHO demonstrates what is possible when nations come together for a common purpose. “We have much to be proud of, but much work to do to realize our founding vision of the highest attainable standard of health for all people. We continue to face vast inequities in access to health services, major gaps in the world’s defenses against health emergencies, and threats from health harming products and the climate crisis. We can only meet these global challenges with global cooperation,” noted Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
To meet these challenges, WHO is urging countries to take urgent action to protect, support and expand the health workforce as a strategic priority. Investments in education, skills and decent jobs for health need to be prioritized to meet the rapidly growing demand for health and avert a projected shortage of 10 million health workers by 2030; primarily in low- and middle-income countries.
In the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, WHO’s roadmap to recovery includes an urgent paradigm shift towards promoting health and well-being and preventing disease by addressing its root causes and creating the conditions for health to thrive. WHO is urging countries to provide health by prioritizing primary health care as the foundation of universal health coverage.
“The future of health depends on how well we power health through science, research, innovation, data, digital technologies, and partnerships,” runs the press release.
