World Health Assembly (WHA)

SC and Cuba Side Event for WHA78, 20 May 2025

South-South Cooperation to Address Health Challenges in the Caribbean. The Role of Medical Cooperation

Side Event organized by the South Centre and the Republic of Cuba during the World Health Assembly 2025

Date and Time: 20th May 2025, 6:00 – 7:30pm

Venue: South Centre (IEV II Conference Centre, Ground Floor, room Rhin, Chemin de Balexert 7/9, 1219 Geneva)

Within the framework of the World Health Assembly 2025, this side event, organized by Cuba, will bring together distinguished Ministers of Health from the Caribbean and Latin America to exchange experiences on the current challenges facing their health systems and the solutions implemented through South-South cooperation.

The panel will focus on how to strengthen South-South collaboration in the health sector, with the aim of building more resilient, equitable, and sustainable health systems in the Caribbean region.

This session will explore how collaboration between Caribbean and Latin American countries has contributed to strengthening regional health systems. Successful initiatives in medical training, professional exchange, and technical assistance will be highlighted. Additionally, innovative medical cooperation strategies that have improved access to and quality of health services for the most vulnerable populations will be discussed, consolidating an exemplary model of solidarity and mutual support.

The event will be conducted in Spanish with simultaneous interpretation into English.

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Policy Brief 141, 15 May 2025

Scaling Up the Health Response to Climate Change: Highlights from the World Health Organization Executive Board’s 156th Meeting on the Global Action Plan on Climate Change and Health

By Bianca Carvalho

The Executive Board of the World Health Organization (WHO), during its 156th meeting held from 3-11 February 2025, discussed a draft Global Action Plan on Climate Change and Health (2025 – 2028) (EB156/40). This policy brief explains the content of the draft Global Action Plan and summarises the feedback provided by Member States during the Executive Board meeting.

Member States at the 156th WHO Executive Board meeting made recommendations for the Global Action Plan, including to ensure that equity remains central, to foster collaboration across sectors, and to enhance support mechanisms—both technical and financial—for developing countries addressing the intersection of climate change and health challenges. Member States also called for more consultations before the draft Global Action Plan is considered for adoption at the 78th World Health Assembly in May 2025.

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SC Statement – NAM Health Ministers Meeting, May 2025

Statement of the Executive Director of the South Centre, Dr. Carlos Correa, at the NAM Health Ministers’ Meeting on the sidelines of the 78th World Health Assembly (May 19-27, 2025)

The decisions to be made at the 78th World Health Assembly will have direct implications not only for national health systems, but also for the very architecture of international cooperation in health. Read the statement by the Executive Director of the South Centre, Dr. Carlos Correa, at the NAM Health Ministers’ Meeting on the sidelines of the 78th WHA.

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Policy Brief 139, 23 April 2025

Advancing Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health and Inequalities in Sexual, Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health:

Highlights from the 156th Meeting of the World Health Organization’s Executive Board

By Bianca Carvalho, Viviana Munoz Tellez

This policy brief examines discussions from the WHO’s 156th Executive Board meeting (February 2025) on the Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health. The Director-General reported many countries falling behind on SDG targets for maternal and child mortality, with persistent inequalities in healthcare access. Member States emphasized the urgent need to accelerate progress through universal access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services and rights, including the right to make informed decisions about reproduction free from discrimination, coercion, and violence. Recommendations focused on priorities for updating the Global Strategy and increasing investments. Two resolutions were advanced: one on regulating digital marketing of breast-milk substitutes (proposed by Brazil and Mexico) and another on World Prematurity Day (proposed by Tanzania). These will be considered for adoption by the World Health Assembly in May 2025.

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South Centre Statement – IHRs 2005 Amendment, May 2024

Statement on the Amendment to the International Health Regulations

We congratulate the WHO members for the adoption of the  amendments to the International Health Regulations to advance equity in access to health products, increase collaboration and finance to develop, strengthen and maintain core capacities. Efforts must continue to finalise a pandemic treaty.

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South Centre Statement – WHA77, 27 May 2024

Statement of the South Centre to the 77th WHA

Agenda Item 3

A critical week for global health with the 77th session of the World Health Assembly. For decision, the future of the pandemic instrument and IHR amendment negotiations.

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SC Statement – NAM Health Ministers Meeting, WHA77, 25 May 2024

STATEMENT BY CARLOS CORREA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE SOUTH CENTRE, AT THE VIRTUAL MEETING OF THE MINISTERS OF HEALTH OF THE MEMBER STATES AND OBSERVER STATES OF THE NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT

 25 May 2024

On the sidelines of the 77th session of the World Health Assembly

There is a need for a stronger and more effective WHO, which should be at the centre of norm-setting and moral guidance. NAM can play a key role in shaping the global health agenda. As in the past, the South Centre remains ready to support NAM efforts in this field.

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Policy Brief 128, 25 April 2024

The WHO Intergovernmental Negotiating Body process and the revised draft of the WHO Pandemic Agreement (A/INB/9R/3)

by Nirmalya Syam & Viviana Muñoz Tellez

This Policy Brief considers the negotiating process conducted so far by the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) for an instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response under the World Health Organization (WHO), and some aspects of the draft text for the Resumed Ninth meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB9R), as well as of the draft proposed resolution for consideration by the World Health Assembly in May 2024. The Policy Brief provides recommendations to assist member States in their negotiations during the INB9R to be held from April 29 to 10 May 2024.

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SC Statement to WHA 76, 22 May 2023

Opening Statement of the South Centre to the Seventy-Sixth World Health Assembly

22 May 2023

The South Centre, the intergovernmental organization of developing countries, appreciates the opportunity to address this World Health Assembly (WHA).

This Assembly will take many important decisions.

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STATEMENT – MEETING OF NAM HEALTH MINISTERS ON 75TH WHA, 20 May 2022

STATEMENT BY CARLOS M. CORREA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE SOUTH CENTRE, TO THE MEETING OF THE NAM HEALTH MINISTERS ON THE OCCASION OF THE 75TH WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY, MAY 20, 2022

The South Centre has closely followed issues concerning access to medicines and the work of the WHO over the years. In the last couple of years, it has provided analyses and advice in connection with the COVID-19 crisis that has so severely affected the members of NAM.

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