IUHPE Statement on the Political Declaration of the UN High-Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage

Print

 

Read the full IUHPE Statement on the Political Declaration adopted at the UN High-Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage, on 23 September 2019.

The IUHPE is pleased to have this opportunity to strongly support the Political Declaration of the High-Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage. On behalf of our members, representing high-, middle- and low-income countries globally, we welcome the focus on universal health coverage (UHC) and the reaffirmation of health as a precondition for sustainable development. As reflected in the Declaration, health promotion is an essential component of UHC.

The IUHPE argues that reorienting health systems to focus more on health promotion, prevention and primary health care, as advocated in the Ottawa Charter, is the most effective and sustainable way to achieve national health goals and targets, and reduce the escalating burden of preventable diseases and mental ill-health on health care systems and treasuries.

Delivering on UHC and meeting the ambitious targets of the SDGs means moving beyond a focus on curative health care to also embrace health promotion and primary prevention interventions that will address the broader determinants of health and place empowered citizens at the centre of their own health and wellbeing.  

 

The IUHPE can help

IUHPE provides technical guidance and support to countries on health promotion implementation strategies that will strengthen the quality of health promotion practice. This includes: providing leadership in mobilizing IUHPE members; developing and implementing an audit tool for member states to assess their health promotion systems; conducting training in advocacy for professionals and policy-makers; supporting capacity development through the IUHPE Accreditation System; conducting and co-organising global and regional conferences on health promotion; supporting effective partnerships; and developing and translating health promotion knowledge, as well as promoting exchanges on effective action through webinars.

 

Read the full IUHPE Statement on the Political Declaration adopted at the UN High-Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage, on 23 September 2019.

Since IUHPE argues that health promotion interventions should be evidence-based, in collaboration with SAGE, we have created a list of articles of the journal Global Health Promotion to contribute to the discussion. We would like to highlight two GHP editorials that touch on key issues discussed in the Political Declaration. They are available in English, French and Spanish.