Your Excellency Patricia Scotland,
Excellencies, dear colleagues and friends,
The devastating consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic go far beyond the disease itself. It has deepened economic, social and health inequalities around the globe, in countries of all sizes and income status.
The impact of the pandemic will be felt for decades, especially among the most vulnerable groups.
The longer the pandemic drags on, the worse those impacts will be.
That’s why it’s critical that nations work together even more closely to support all countries to vaccinate 70% of their populations by the middle of this year, strengthen the resilience of health systems, and work towards an inclusive economic recovery.
At present, only 42% of the population of Commonwealth countries have received a full course of vaccination, and there is wide disparity between countries.
African countries of the Commonwealth have achieved an average vaccination rate of just 23%.
Bridging this gap is an urgent priority for WHO – not only for bringing the pandemic under control and saving lives, but also for protecting livelihoods, and supporting a sustainable recovery.
We can only bridge that gap by working together in partnership – which is true for so many of the challenges we face.
I am a strong believer in partnerships.
Over the past few years, WHO has institutionalized its collaboration with many regional groupings, platforms and organizations with whom we share common goals and principles.
The Commonwealth of Nations is one of our most unique partners, representing 54 countries, and 2.5 billion people.
The strength of the Commonwealth lies in its diversity and shared inheritance in language, culture and the rule of law.
WHO and the Commonwealth share the same values: to respect all states and people, to seek consensus through consultation, and to support the most vulnerable communities.
We are both champions of small states, which are particularly vulnerable to the health and environmental impacts of climate change.
I am therefore delighted to sign this Memorandum of Understanding to elevate our partnership to the next level.
Many Commonwealth countries have made unprecedented commitments in recent years to improve the health of their people.
These include fast-tracking the timeline to eliminate malaria, blinding trachoma and cervical cancer, and expanding health insurance and access to services.
WHO is committed to working with the Commonwealth Secretariat closer than ever to maintain momentum, and to provide technical guidance to countries to help achieve these goals.
We are setting seven priorities under the MoU:
promoting universal health coverage and primary health care;
strengthening global health security;
promoting healthy environments;
improving the health of vulnerable groups;
transforming lifelong learning;
building a data partnership;
and creating space for innovation and the exchange of knowledge.
There are a number of existing initiatives that we will use as catalysts.
These include WHO’s initiative for Small Islands Developing States, the Universal Health and Preparedness Review, the WHO Academy, our global initiatives on childhood cancer and breast cancer, and the Global Diabetes Compact, to name a few.
Your Excellency, Secretary-General Patricia Scotland, I appreciate your commitment to stronger collaboration with WHO, and I look forward to working closely with you and your team to pursue WHO’s mission to promote health, keep the world safe, and serve the vulnerable.
I thank you.