WFPHA Newsletter - October 2011

LAUNCH OF THE AFRICAN FEDERATION OF PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATIONS

31 August 2011, Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire

The African Federation of Public Health Associations (AFPHAs) was launched during the 61^st Session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee Meeting for Africa held from 29 August to 02 September 2011 in Yamoussoukro, Republic of Côte d'Ivoire. The WHO Regional Committee for Africa is the Organization’s governing body in the Africa Region, composed of Ministers of Health of the 46 Member States. From 29^th August and 2^nd September, delegates discussed and made recommendations and resolutions on a range of health issues. The launch and inaugural meeting of the AFPHA was a Special Session of the Regional Committee Meeting.

The inaugural meeting of the AFPHA was attended by representatives of national African Public Health Associations from 27 countries and the President of the World Federation of Public Health Associations. The Ethiopian Public Health Association (EPHA) was represented by a team of three members: Dr. Tewabech Beshaw (President), Dr. Wakgari Deressa (Vice President) and Mr. Hailegnaw Eshete (Executive Director).

The representatives of the national African Public Health Associations discussed and adopted a constitution and bylaws of the AFPHA, and thereafter elected the Executive Committee of the Federation as follows:

1. Dr. Mathias Some (Burkina Faso) – President
2. Dr. Flavia Senkubuge (South Africa) – Vice President
3. Dr. Tewabech Beshaw (Ethiopia) – Secretary

Five other committee members were also elected from Algeria, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Mozambique and Uganda. The Secretariat of the AFPHA was decided to be permanently based in the Ethiopian Public Health Association in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The AFPHA was officially launched at a Special Session of the Regional Committee Meeting on Wednesday 31^st August 2011. The WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Luis Gomes Sambo, the President of the World Federation of Public Health Associations, Prof. Ulrich Laaser, the new President of the AFPHA, Dr. Mathias Some and Dr. Tewabech Beshaw addressed the Meeting during the launch. Prof. Ulrich Laaser and Dr. Tewabech Beshaw, respectively, addressed the meeting focusing on the World Federation of Public Health Associations and the 13^th World Congress on Public Health to be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 23 to 27 April 2012.

The vision of the AFPHA is to have a healthy and productive population in Africa. Through an active participation of the national Public Health Associations and the Federation, its mission is therefore to engage all key stakeholders in the continent and the world to influence policies, strategies and activities that will positively impact the health of all the African people.

Membership of the AFPHA is open to all multidisciplinary national Public Health Associations in the African countries. However, other public health entities can collaborate with the Federation as associate members or as active partners.

By

Dr. Tewabech Beshaw, President of EPHA

Dr. Wakgari Deressa, Vice President of EPHA

Mr. Hailegnaw Eshete, EPHA Executive Director

Address of the President elect of the African Federation of Public Health Associations to the Ministers of Health.

Adresse du président élu de la fédération africaine des associations de santé publique aux ministres de la santé.

Journal of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa

Executive Committee of the AFPHA

Dr. Mathias Some (Burkina Faso), President in the Chair

Dr. Flavia Senkubuge (South Africa), Vice President

Dr. Tewabech Bishaw (Ethiopia), Secretary General

Dr. Deogratias Sekempi (Uganda), Member

Dr. Zoughailech Djamel (Algeria), Member

Dr. Dr. Blibolo A. Didier (Cote d’Ivoire), Member

Mr. Dominique Kondji Kondji (Cameroon), Member

Mr. Armando Manusse (Mozambique), Member

LAST CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

13^th World Congress on Public Health

Moving Towards Global Health Equity: Opportunities and Threats

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 23-27 April 2012

http://www.etpha.org/2012/

Call for Abstracts (submission deadline: 21 October 2011)

INFORMATION FOR WFPHA MEMBERS

The results of the WFPHA Survey are now available.

For "Main global health agenda items", click here

For "Main expectations from the WFPHA", click here

For "WFPHA Working Group", click here

For " Synergies with other PHAs", click here

To see the current activities and action plan of the WFPHA to achieve the main goals of the health agenda and to meet its Members' expectations, click here.

Thanks a lot for your participation at the WFPHA survey.

Your opinion is important for us!

For more information, please contact the Secretariat

UN high-level meeting to address the global burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). September 19 in New York City

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are increasingly one of the key drivers of health and health inequity in our world. The recent World Economic Forum and Harvard University study estimates that, over the next 20 years, NCDs will cost the global economy more than US$ 30 trillion. This figure is equivalent to 48% of global GDP in 2010. Our national health systems, our economies and our societies cannot sustain this stress.

Between September 19-21, 2011, the UN convened a high-level meeting of its member states on this issue. The aim of this UN Summit was to adopt an action-oriented declaration that would serve to shape national and global agendas. This was the second time in the history of the UN that the General Assembly met on a health issue (the last issue was AIDS).

Reviews about the “success” of the Summit are mixed. While everyone seemed pleased that the General Assembly adopted by consensus the resolution entitled “Political Declaration of the High-Level Meeting of the General Assembly on the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (UN Document A/66/L.1 (http://bit.ly/peGrlJ), several NGOs voiced disappointment in the lack of funding commitments by governments. Several consumer and public health organizations also noted with concern the lack within the Declaration of any time-bound goals or targets to be achieved with respect to the NCDs and their related risk factors. In this regard, the Declaration called on WHO to submit "options for strengthening and facilitating multisectoral action" by the end of 2012, and to prepare a review in 2014.

Unfortunately due to a complicated registration system for NGOs, the WFPHA was unable to obtain official status and an invitation to attend the Summit. However, we understand that representatives from some member public health associations may have attended through the auspices of country delegations or other NGOs and health groups.

For more information about the UN NCD Summit, go to:

http://bit.ly/kqqPNq

Interesting links to this topic

Chronic Emergency: Why NCDs Matter
Health, Nutrition, and Population, Human Development Network, The World Bank, July 2011
Available online PDF [34p.] at:http://bit.ly/nFHaAR

Noncommunicable diseases country profiles 2011

World Health Organization 2011 

Available online PDF [209p.] at: http://bit.ly/nG9Hu8

The Growing Danger of Non-Communicable Diseases: Acting Now to Reverse Course
The World Bank - Human Development Network – September 2011
Available online PDF file [24p.] at: http://bit.ly/mY9zP8 

The Global Economic Burden of Non-communicable Diseases

A report by the World Economic Forum and the Harvard School of Public Health, September 2011

Available online PDF [48p.] at: http://bit.ly/odBjrH

Report from the Swiss Public Health Conference

The Swiss Public Health Conference was held with success in Basel in August under the main theme “NCD’s – a global challenge”. With 11 key note lectures, a round table and 22 parallel sessions, it was a varied and stimulating conference.

Link to the online conferences

Report

IDRC's new NCDP Program

The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada launched recently a new program for applied research on non-communicable disease prevention. The Non-Communicable Disease Prevention program (NCDP) will fund research on the prevention of non-communicable disease in low- and middle-income countries. The goal is to generate new knowledge to inform the adoption and effective implementation of low-cost and high impact policies and programs for the prevention of non-communicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries. Building on the Research for International Tobacco Control (RITC) program, the new program will increase NCDP's allocation of funds to tobacco control. Three other risk factors common to many non-communicable diseases will also be addressed – unhealthy diet, alcohol misuse, and physical inactivity.

For more information about the NCDP program

Le nouveau programme sur les MNT du CRDI

Social and environmental factors continue to be the most important determinants of human health, despite advances in the quality and effectiveness of health care services. Factors such as early childhood development, income inequality and education play a critical role in determining a person’s level of health. Any attempt to improve population health must include measures that address the social determinants of health (SDH).

The McGill University’s Institute for Health & Social Policy (Montréal, Canada) launched the World Legal Rights Data Centre (WoRLD). This unique tool will help public health organizations, institutes and experts design SDH-based policies and strategies. The WoRLD initiative aims to improve the quality and quantity of comparative data available to policy makers, NGOs and researchers on policies affecting the social factors that affect health and health equity. It compares policies and their outcomes relating to issues such as working conditions, education and poverty in all UN countries. By documenting national policies, the WoRLD initiative allows individuals and organizations to:

·Determine whether one country is ahead or behind other countries in terms of policies

·Rapidly spot countries and policies that need improvement

·Learn from promising models in different countries

·Develop a better understanding of the best design for these policies

·Assess critical population health needs from a SDH perspective

·Identify which policies are most important and have the greatest impact on health

·Hold governments accountable for their commitments in international agreements and legislation

The WoRLD initiative has several components. The first one, The Work, Family and Equity Index (WFEI), compares the labour and social policies of 190 UN member states. It is now available to the public (www.raisingtheglobalfloor.org). The other four components (the Child Labour Initiative, the Education Initiative, the Poverty Reduction Global Policy Database, and the Discrimination and Equity in Constitutions Project) are under development and are expected to come on-line over the next few years.

For more information about the McGill University Institute for Health & Social Policy

The Journal of Public Health Policy

The JPHP published in its August 2011 issue (Volume 32, Number 3) an article reviewing the achievements and contribution of CPHA's Strengthening of Public Health Associations (SOPHA) Program to build public health capacity in developing countries over the past 25 years. Entitled “Public health associations can make a difference: A tribute to the Canadian contributions and some future challenges for public health associations”, the review was written by two independent authors (Christer Hogstedt, former Head of the Research Department at the Swedish National Institute of Public Health, and Bosse Pettersson, former Deputy Director-General at the Swedish National Institute of Public Health).

The article is available on-line

The HRH Global Resource Center

The website of the 25th anniversary of the birth of the Ottawa Charter has been set up by the WHO Regional Office for Europe recently.

HIFA2015

HIFA2015 (Healthcare Information For All by 2015) is a global campaign and knowledge network that brings together more than 5000 health workers, librarians, publishers, researchers and policymakers in 2000 organisations across 158 countries worldwide, all committed to a common goal: By 2015, every person worldwide will have access to an informed health care provider. One-third of members are based in Africa, one-third in Europe, and one-third in the rest of the world. They range from senior executives at the World Health Organization to community health workers in rural Uganda.

World Conference on Social Determinants of Health

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 19-21 October 2011

WFPHA received and accepted an official invitation from the World Health Organization to participate in the WHO Conference on the Social Determinants of Health.

This global conference, which takes place on 19-21 October 2011 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, seeks to build support for action on the social determinants of health (SDH). The conference will bring together Member States and stakeholders to share experiences on policies and strategies aiming to reduce health inequities. WFPHA has been invited to participate in several conference-related events:

-A pre-conference session organized by the People’s Health Movement (PHM) on addressing the SDH through NGOs;

-A pre-conference session marking the release of the Global Health Watch 3, a civil society-driven alternative to the World Health Report;

-Co-chair a session with the Presidents of the World Medical Association and the International Council of Nurses and make a presentation at a conference on “The Role of Public Health in Reducing Health Inequities”; and,

-A PHM-organized post-conference session on Global Governance for Health.

An invitation to participate in a WFPHA survey on the SDH was sent out recently to all Full Members. We encourage you to complete it, as the data collected will provide input to the WFPHA’s presentation at the Conference.

WFPHA to attend 139th APHA Conference

APHA 139th Annual Meeting and Exposition , Washington, DC • October 29- November 2, 2011

The WFPHA will be represented at this year’s 139^th conference and annual meeting of the American Public Health Association (APHA), which takes place October 29 – November 2 in Washington, DC. Jim Chauvin, WFPHA VP and President-Elect, will co-chair two concurrent sessions dedicated to the WFPHA. The first, during the afternoon of Monday, October 30, will examine the process of building community competence for public health as a means of achieving health equity for all. The second session on prison health will be co-organized with Dr. Alex Gatherer, a retired public health physician and technical advisor to WHO. WFPHA will also host a breakfast meeting for member association representatives and other interested parties and a WFPHA exhibit booth will be displayed. To date, besides the USA, representatives from public health associations in Japan, Republic of Korea, Canada, the UK, Mexico, Mongolia and Ethiopia have indicated their intention to attend. A more detailed report will be published in the next WFPHA newsletter.

Conference Welfare Development and Health

Copenhagen, Denmark, 10-12 November 2011

Some representatives of the WFPHA will be present at the conference and would be happy to meet you. Marta Lomazzi, WFPHA Geneva Secretariat Program Manager, will report on the WFPHA current activities and action plan during a special session on Friday 11 November from 10:00 to 11:00. The exact meeting room will be communicated later. She will be available also during the poster session 4L (Public health competencies - Trans European public health) planned on Friday from 12:30-13:30, at the poster “The activities of the World Federation of Public Health Associations”.

We expect representatives from several national public health associations to also be there. If your PHA will attend the conference and you would like to meet her or to join the special session, please contact the secretariat as soon as possible.

The European Public Health Conference aims to contribute to the improvement of public health in Europe by offering a means for exchanging information and a platform for debate to researchers, policy makers, practitioners in the field of public health, public health training and education and health services research in Europe.

“……Public health contributes to welfare by means of health promotion, health protection, disease prevention and health services. Such interventions represent investments in a better health and better life for populations – a contribution to welfare. At the same time, they contribute to a healthy labour force.

Read the brochure

Details are available here

The 1st International Symposium on Helath Research & Development and The 3rd Western Pacific Regional Conference on Public Health 2011

http://www.nihrd.or.id/

5th High-Level Symposium on Global Health Diplomacy

"Ten years after the doha declaration: The future agenda at the Interface of Public Health, Innovation and Trade - An Outlook on the next ten years"

Date: Wednesday, 23 November 2011, 10:00-17:00
Venue: Council Room, World Trade Organization, Rue de Lausanne 154, Geneva

The conference will mark an important milestone for global alcohol control efforts following on from the endorsement of the WHO Global Strategy on Alcohol in 2010. The conference will bring together leaders from all over the world who are committed to working towards the development and implementation of effective alcohol policy free from commercial influence. It will provide an opportunity for policy makers, advocates, academics, and campaigners to share and exchange their knowledge and experience. The conference will also be a platform for developing a truly global network and for discussing future efforts at the global level to reduce problems from alcohol.

Health Care Without Harm, the World Federation of Public Health Associations, the Climate and Health Council and the Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine, University of Kwa Zulu Natal are organizing the first Global Climate and Health Summit. The Summit will take place on December 4 in Durban, South Africa parallel to the COP 17 climate negotiations. The event will bring together key health sector actors to discuss the impacts of climate change on public health and solutions that promote greater health, as well as economic equity between and within nations.

Read more or register to participate of the Climate and Health Summit.

1^st Annual Mongolian Public Health Conference 2011

The Mongolian Public Health Professionals’ Association (MPHPA) is holding its 1^st Annual Mongolian Public Health Conference on December 8^th 2011, in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. The theme of the meeting is: Advancing public health through learning, advocating and working together. The conference is open to both those who wish to present or to attend only.

The MPHPA is now accepting submission of abstracts for presentation at the conference. The conference streams are:

Ø  Knowledge Translation and Policy Implications

Ø  Health Sector Management

Ø  Health Promotion

Ø  Environmental Health

Contact Us

Mongolian Public Health Professionals’ Association

Tel/Fax:(976-11) 325190

Email

GRF One Health Summit 2012

Risks and Opportunities
19-23 February 2012 in Davos, Switzerland 

Geneva Health Forum 2012: Call for Submissions

Geneva Health Forum invites you to make a submission to its fourth edition, to be held from

18 – 20 April 2012 in Geneva, Switzerland.

The theme for the 2012 edition is : A Critical Shift to Chronic Conditions: Learning From the Frontliners. We welcome your submission revolving around this theme or its subthemes

Share your insights!

We provide participants with a new submission format. You can either submit a traditional scientific abstract or highlight your field experiences with the submission of a project implementation. To enhance the impact of your submission you can add photos, a short video, or audio footage.

Shape the debate on global access to health!

Share your research findings and experiences in the field with an international audience.

On-line submission is now open.

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