World Leaders Call for More Investment in Global Health

DOHA , December 1, 2008 –A new high-level taskforce set up to find new ways to finance better health results in poor countries has held its inaugural meeting in Doha at the UN Financing For Development Summit in Qatar.

"This is a unique moment for us all. These are extraordinary, challenging times for the global economy. Yet we know they are also extraordinary, challenging times for the millions of poor. For the tragic truth remains that a child dies every three seconds, a mother dies in pregnancy or childbirth every minute and there are around 7,000 new HIV infections every day" said the UK Secretary of State Douglas Alexander in Doha at the first meeting of the High Level Taskforce on Innovative Financing for Health Systems.

The Task Force brings together world and political leaders to find new funding measures to improve the health of people in developing countries in keeping with the Millennium Development Goals. Specifically, the Task Force’s financing efforts will help to strengthen health systems and recruit and train health workers to prevent avoidable deaths and provide quality healthcare for the world’s poorest people.

Finding additional funds, however, at a time when the global economy is in turmoil is a major challenge and yet reducing health spending will have long term consequences for developing countries. It is estimated that 100 million people have already fallen back into poverty as a result of the financial crisis. Millions more are at risk of following them.

”We need to innovate and hold ourselves accountable for raising the funds that are desperately needed to alleviate such widespread human suffering and distress" said World Bank Vice-President for Human Development Joy Phumaphi.

The Taskforce will report to the G8 summit in 2009 on recommendations on the mix of innovative international financing mechanisms needed to deliver the extra resources required; and will promote international support for these recommendations to ensure they are implemented.

More information is on: http://www.internationalhealthpartnership.net/taskforce.htmland the Taskforce Communications & Media Adviser Colleen Harris can be contacted on +44 780 229 6737 email colleen@harrisprivate.com.