Geneva, 6 May 2019
Dear Madam President,
Dear Mr. President,
I am pleased to inform you that the 72 World Health Assembly (WHA) will take place
in Geneva from 20 to 28 May 2019. The WHA, which meets every May in Geneva, is
the decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO)
–
it is attended by
delegations from all Members of WHO, with a view to reviewing the work of WHO,
setting new health goals and assigning new tasks to the WHO. As reflected in the
provisional agenda (http://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/WHA72/A72_1-en.pdf),
participation in the WHA presents an opportunity for parliamentarians to engage with a
comprehensive range of key global health policy and regulatory issues as well as to
strengthen relations with health actors at a multilateral level.
During the past several years, the IPU has worked on strengthening the relationship
between parliaments and the WHO, and in particular increasing the participation of
parliamentarians in the WHA. The Director-General of WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom
Ghebreyesus, has urged Ministers of Health attending the WHA to consider reaching
out to their parliaments with a view to MPs participating in their national delegations. In
nd
this context, the WHO and IPU will organize a technical briefing during the 72 WHA,
entitled
From commitment to action: Parliaments moving the UHC agenda forward.
The technical briefing will take place on 23 May 2019 from 12.30 to 2.00 p.m. at the
Palais des Nations in Geneva. This high profile event is the second ever organized on
the occasion of a WHA.
Within the context of the development of an IPU resolution on universal health
coverage (UHC) and the right to health, the briefing will provide MPs with the
opportunity to have an exchange with health experts on key issues in relation to
universal health coverage and on ways and means of contributing effectively to the
global health agenda. Participants will also be able to consider potential ways to
strengthen cooperation with relevant health actors.
In addition, a parliamentary seminar will be held on 24 May from 12.30 to 2.30 p.m.,
providing a platform for the exchange of knowledge and experiences among
nd
parliamentarians attending the 72 WHA on how parliaments can mobilize on UHC.
The programmes of these two events will be shared closer to the date of the events.
I am counting on your support in reaching out to your Ministry in charge of Health in
order to ensure that parliamentarians can be included in the national delegation of
nd
your country to the 72 WHA.
I am looking forward to welcoming members of your parliament to this important event.
Yours sincerely,
nd
Office of the
Secretary General
Martin Chungong
Secretary General