24 May 2014: The 67th Session of the World Health Assembly (WHA) adopted over 20 resolutions on public health issues, including on ensuring a central role for health in the post-2015 development agenda. The WHA is the World Health Organization’s (WHO) supreme decision-making body.

Addressing WHA 67, Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General, described the challenges that rising inequalities pose for addressing global health. She said it is clear that “health has an obligatory place on any post-2015 development agenda.” She suggested the post-2015 agenda pursue higher goals, including ending maternal, neonatal and childhood deaths, eliminating a large number of neglected tropical diseases and ending the tuberculosis (TB) epidemic.

The WHA 67 resolution on health in the post-2015 agenda urges States to: ensure the post-2015 agenda will accelerate and sustain progress towards achievement of health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), including child, maternal, sexual and reproductive health, nutrition, HIV, TB and malaria; recognize the need for additional attention on newborn health and neglected tropical diseases; address non-communicable diseases (NCDs) while also promoting mental health; and promote universal health care (UHC) as fundamental to health in the post-2015 agenda.

The resolution further urges States to: emphasize the need to address social, environmental and economic determinants of health to reduce health inequities and contribute to sustainable development; call for the right to physical and mental health as fundamental to equitable, inclusive sustainable development; recognize the importance of accountability through regular assessment of progress by strengthening of civil registration and vital statistics and health information systems, with disaggregated data to monitor health equity; urge the inclusion of health-related indicators for measuring sustainable development progress; and emphasize the importance of strengthening health systems to progress towards and sustain UHC and improved health outcomes.

Member States also adopted resolutions on, inter alia: addressing violence, particularly against women and girls; finance and coordination of health research and development for diseases that disproportionately affect developing countries; and the role of WHO and ministries of public health in the implementation of the Minamata Convention on Mercury. WHO considers mercury one of the top ten chemicals of major public health concern.

Over 3,000 participants attended WHA 67, which took place from 19-24 May 2014, in Geneva, Switzerland. [WHO Press Release] [Chan Statement] [UN Press Release] [Draft Resolution: Health in the post-2015 development agenda] [Publication: Monitoring the achievement of the health-related Millennium Development Goals] [WHA 67 Website]