16 October 2018: Global health and development agencies agreed to adopt a shared work plan to accelerate action toward achieving health-related targets in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Coordinated by the World Health Organization (WHO), the plan commits to almost 50 “common milestones,” with progress to be reviewed at the 2023 World Health Summit. The plan titled, ‘Global Action Plan for Healthy Lives and Well-being,’ addresses targets across 14 SDGs, and will be presented to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in September 2019.

WHO announced the plan at the World Health Summit in Berlin, Germany, which took place from 14-16 October 2018. The Global Action Plan coordinates funding and collective action to address barriers to health access and improve the quality of healthcare. Agencies that have signed up to the joint plan include the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Population Agency (UNFPA), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), UNAIDS, UN Women, the World Bank, Gavi the Vaccine Alliance, and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

The plan comes in response to a request from Heads of State Angela Merkel of Germany, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of Ghana, and Erna Solberg of Norway to increase collaboration on health-related targets of the 2030 Agenda. The agencies seek to “align, accelerate and account” for actions to improve their efficiency and effectiveness.

The first phase of the plan identifies seven accelerators for promoting action on health targets: sustainable financing; frontline health systems; community and civil society engagement; determinants of health; research and development, innovation and access; data and digital health; and innovative programming in fragile and vulnerable states and for disease outbreak responses. [WHO Press Release] [UNICEF Press Release] [WHO Webpage on Global Action Plan] [Global Action Plan Summary]