Global Health Initiatives
An emerging and global trend in health is a focus on partnerships - alongside public-private partnerships there are also a number global health initiatives. Such initiatives are thought to be one of the benefits of globalization. Global initiatives are typically programmes targeted at specific diseases and are supposed to bring additional resources to health efforts. Three major global health initiatives were launched between 1998 and 2000:
- Roll Back Malaria. A global strategy to reduce deaths from malaria by increasing access to prompt and effective treatment (including protective intermittent therapy for pregnant women) and prevention tools (including insecticide-treated bed nets); by facilitating rapid response to malaria outbreaks; and by developing new products for the prevention and treatment of malaria.
- Stop TB. A global strategy to stop the spread of TB around the world. One of its objectives is to promote implementation of the directly observed therapy short-course strategy (DOTS).
- Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization. A global effort to strengthen childhood immunization programmes and bring a new generation of recently licensed vaccines into use in developing countries. These include vaccines against hepatitis B, childhood meningitis, yellow fever and respiratory infections, which are the leading cause of death in children under age five.
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is another example. However, this is a funding mechanism rather than an implementing initiative. The Global Fund aims to attract, manage and disburse additional resources through a new public-private partnership. This will make a sustainable and significant contribution to mitigate the negative impact of these three diseases, and thus, directly contribute to the Millennium Development Goals 4, 5, 6 and 8.