Federal Minister of Health Hermann Gröhe: “The world must be better prepared to deal with future public health crises. And this is our job.”
The refugee crisis, diseases like Ebola, the joint effort to combat antimicrobial resistance, the UN Sustainable Development Goals, big data, and the effects of climate change on health were central topics at the opening ceremony of the World Health Summit (WHS) in the plenary hall “Weltsaal” of the German Federal Foreign Office.
In the presence of about 1,000 international guests, WHS Presidents Detlev Ganten and Shunichi Fukuhara, of Kyoto University, highlighted the importance of a joint effort by academia, policy makers, the private sector, and civil society worldwide to provide solutions for global health care. “Nobody can face this challenge alone. All sectors have to work together – which is the aim of the World Health Summit as well,” said Ganten. “The time for action is now,” added Fukuhara.
In his opening speech, Federal Minister of Health Hermann Gröhe emphasized Germany’s leadership for example in the current refugee crisis and in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. However, in order to achieve sustainable success, greater international coordination is needed – a role that only the World Health Organization (WHO) can fulfill: “WHO must be properly resourced and fundamentally reformed if it wants to re-establish its role as the guardian of global public health.” In particular the current refugee crisis proves the necessity of collaboration across all borders: “We see our presidency as both an opportunity and a responsibility to take an active part in shaping global health policy, together with our partners,” said Gröhe.
Margaret Chan, Director-General of the WHO, stated that current challenges have gone far beyond the traditional scope of health care. Climate change, for example, has become a worldwide threat to health: “WHO’s recent estimate that air pollution kills around 7 million people each year has finally given health a place in debates about the consequences of climate change.” Next to that, chronic non-communicable diseases have overtaken infectious diseases as the world’s biggest killers. Cooperation from all sectors is needed to solve problems like these: “The World Health Summit is
truly a unique forum for international leaders to come together, exchange ideas and best practices,” said Chan.
Other speakers of the evening included Victor Dzau, President of the US National Academy of Medicine, Birgit König, CEO of Allianz Private Krankenversicherungs-AG, and Axel Radlach Pries, Dean of the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin.
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