64th World Health Assembly (WHA)
Technical Briefing: Accountability Commission
Commission on Information and Accountability for Women's and Children's Health releases advance Report
19 MAY 2011 | WHA GENEVA - Health leaders from around the world took part in a Technical Briefing at the WHA as the Commission on Information and Accountability presented its recommendations to go forward and accountability report: Keeping Promises, Measuring Results - a report referred by many present as "gamechanging". Additionally, 16 countries presented new commitments to the Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health. Please see the full meeting Agenda below, and documents and related links on your right.
Messages from the Commission’s co-chairs were relayed by The Honorable Dr Haji Hussein Mpanda, Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Tanzania, and Ambassador Marius Grinius, Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations in Geneva.
President Jakaya Kikwete, United Republic of Tanzania: "All partners are accountable for the promises they make and the health policies and programmes they design and implement. Tracking resources and results of public health spending are critical for transparency, credibility and ensuring that much-needed funds are used for their intended purposes and to reach those who need them most."
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Canada: “The Commission has developed bold yet practical measures that will help save the lives of mothers and children living in the world's poorest countries. Through our collective efforts we will ensure tangible progress in achieving our goals, but only if we remain fully committed to making the recommendations in this report a reality."
Highlights of the ten recommendations of the report - Keeping Promises, Measuring Results - include:
1) Increasing the number of countries with well-developed systems to measure births, deaths and causes of deaths; 2) Measuring against 11 common indicators on reproductive, maternal and child health; 3) Helping countries integrate the use of Information and Communication Technologies in their national health information systems; 4) Countries with high maternal and child deaths tracking and reporting resource indicators; and 5) An independent Expert Review Group reporting regularly to the UN Secretary-General on results and resources related to the Global Strategy for Women's and Children's Health and progress of the implementation of these recommendations.
Dr Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director UNFPA noted the 16 new country commitments made to the Global Strategy for Women’s and Children’s Health: “The commitments by countries today demonstrate that we are on the verge of a tipping point." The 16 Commitments document can be found on the right.
Quotes and comments
Speakers at the discussion noted the need to strengthen capacity to monitor the eleven indicators and to link resources to results. Action and commitment at the country level was noted by speakers, who both applauded and underlined the need for national domestic financial commitment, and the need for support from parliamentarians as well as multilateral agencies including the H4+ group (UNFPA, UNICEF, WHO, the World Bank, and UNAIDS).
- Dr Margaret Chan, Director-General, WHO: Dr Chan noted the importance of tracking the US$ 40 billion committed to the Global Strategy at its launch in September 2010 and explained that WHO would set up a Secretariat to facilitate the Expert Review Group.
- Dr Tore Godal, Special Adviser to the Prime Minister of Norway praised the bold recommendations and said that if a robust global multi-stakeholder plan which includes a Review Committee reporting to the UN Secretary-General is developed, Norway would support the initiative with 50 million Norwegian Kroner.
- Dr Carole Presern, Director, PMNCH offered the support of The Partnership to the implementation of the Commission’s recommendations through its multi-constituency platform for dissemination and consensus-building around the 11 indicators, as well as the development of a report on the progress on the commitments to the Global Strategy. "What gets measured gets done,” Dr Presern concluded.
Agenda
Chair persons
- The Honorable Modou Diagne Fada, Minister of Health, Senegal
- Ms Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, General Secretary, World YWCA
Introductory remarks by representatives of the Co-chairs of the Commission
- The Honorable Dr Haji Hussein Mpanda, Minister of Health and Social Welfare, on behalf of His Excellency Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania
- Ambassador Marius Grinius, Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations in Geneva, of behalf of the Right Honorable Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada
Presentation and Panel Discussion of the Report of the Commission
- Dr Margaret Chan, Director-General, WHO
- Dr Hamadoun Touré, Secretary-General, ITU
Panel Discussion
- Dr Margaret Chan, Director-General, WHO
- Dr Tore Godal, Special Adviser to the Prime Minister of Norway
- Ambassador Marius Grinius, Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations in Geneva
- Dr Klaus Leisinger, President and Managing Director, Novartis Foundation
- The Honorable Dr Haji Hussein Mpanda, Minister of Health and Social Welfare, United Republic of Tanzania
- Dr Hamadoun Touré, Secretary-General, ITU
Commitments to the Global Strategy for Women's and Children's Health
- Dr Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director UNFPA
Additional Comments from H4+ members
- Dr Ian Pett, Chief Health Systems and Strategic Planning, UNICEF
- Ms Nicole Klingen, Senior Health Specialist, World Bank
