E-drug: Dr Brundtland (WHO) in Japan
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Greetings from Okinawa where the G8 will discuss infectious diseases
this morning. We will keep you informed. This is the presentation of
Dr
Brundtland, WHO Director-General, at a roundtable held shortly before
the G8 here in Japan.
Ellen't Hoen
Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland
Director-General
World Health Organization G8: Tokyo,
20th July 2000
ROUND TABLE MEETING: CHALLENGES FOR DEVELOPMENT
The massive effort to tackle infectious diseases: a key to global prosperity
We have known for years that poor people tend to die young. The poorest
billion in our world are particularly vulnerable as a result of infectious
diseases - notably HIV, TB and malaria. Each death can be avoided
with low cost technologies that are available today.
We have also known for years that poor people stay poor if they are sick.
Children cannot learn, adults cannot earn. Household savings are used
up in the search for cure. Poor households suffer - terribly - when
an adult dies young.
Developing societies cannot prosper unless their people are healthy. What
would Africa's GDP be now if malaria had been tackled thirty years
ago, when effective control measures first became available? $100
billion greater than it is now. What will happen to the economies of
developing nations severely affected by HIV? A decline in GDP of at
least 1% per year.
Infectious diseases can be tamed with the technologies available now.
Some developing countries have been able to reduce the incidence of
HIV by 80%, to achieve a five-fold reduction in TB deaths or to halve
malaria death rates. Their leaders have encouraged widespread
provision of low cost goods and services to prevent, as well as cure,
disease. Their governments have rewarded creativity and excellence in
disease control efforts.
In Abuja, Lom�E New York and Geneva, Heads of State of developing
countries have declared that all their people should be able to avoid
suffering and deaths due to infectious diseases. They have pledged
better access to a set of inexpensive and cost-effective
interventions.
Implementing this pledge is hard for Governments with low budgets for
health care - less than, say, $50 per person each year. A substantial
increase in development assistance is necessary, including debt
relief funds when they become available.
WHO and partner agencies have worked with developing country
governments on a new framework for concerted action. It is the start
of a massive effort against HIV, malaria and TB - the infectious
diseases that sustain poverty.
Within countries, new mechanisms for responding to infectious disease
concentrate on better health outcomes among the most vulnerable. They
go beyond the public health system, catalysing extra action through
community and private channels. Innovative partnerships bring
together public, private and voluntary organisations. Social
Marketing gets goods to those who need them through private channels.
Service quality is sustained through tightly managed franchises.
Community groups and NGOs are enabled to respond to poor people's
needs with support from social funds. And, financial support for
service providers reflects their performance and transparency. It is
backed up by accountability - to the people served as well as to
funding bodies
At the global level, we offer incentives for research and development of
cost effective therapies and vaccines. We work for the better
application of important agreements on international trade and
intellectual property,
taking account of poor people's urgent public health needs. And we are
gearing up for strong global advocacy, highlighting the targets that
we need to achieve over the next decade.
We know what needs to be done to tackle infectious diseases, and how to
intensify action against HIV, malaria and TB. We now have a framework
to link actions together and yield results. We are committed to work
with you to make a big difference in the next decade.
MSF Access to Medicines Campaign
ethoen@hotmail.com
www.accessmed-msf.org
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