The role of Primary Health Care in the COVID-19 pandemic response and leading equitable recovery. High-Level Event
Last 22nd of June 2021, WHO, UNICEF and the Mnistry of Health Care of Kazakhstan hosted a global ministerial event which aimed to:
- call on political leaders worldwide to reaffirm the importance of primary health care in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and other health-related emergencies;
- share best practices and success stories of strengthening primary health care to facilitate COVID-19 response (including COVID vaccine roll-out), promote equitable recovery and boost health system resilience;
- discuss national health care systems’ prevention and preparedness for future health emergencies and the international community’s role;
- discuss the Primary Health Care Operational Framework to strengthen health care systems and support countries to scale up national efforts to strengthen primary health care; and
- improve communication to facilitate preparations for the inclusion of primary health care in the UN General Assembly 2022 Agenda
Programme
Part 1. High-level plenary
Moderators
Alexey Tsoy, Minister of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Zsuzsanna Jakab, Deputy-Director General, WHO
Speakers
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, WHO
Henrietta Fore, Executive Director, UNICEF
Muhammad Pate, Global Director, Health, Nutrition and Population, World Bank
Francesca Colombo, Head, Health Division, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (keynote speaker)
Hans Kluge, Regional Director, WHO European Region
Suraya Dalil, Director, WHO Special Programme on Primary Health Care
Part 2. Ministerial Panel: The role of primary health care in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic
Moderator
Afshan Khan, Regional Director, UNICEF Europe and Central Asia
Panelists
Daniel Salas Peraza, Minister of Health, Costa Rica
Nguyen Thanh Long, Minister of Health, Viet Nam (TBC)
Janez Poklukar, Minister of Health, Slovenia
Mohammad Assai, Senior Advisor, Minister of Health and Medical Education, Islamic Republic of Iran
Discussant
Carissa Etienne, Regional Director, WHO Regional Office for the Americas
Part 3. Vaccination and primary health care: Working together for COVAX and zero-dose agendas
Moderator
Aboubacar Kampo, Director, Health Programmes, UNICEF
Panelists
Kate O’Brien, Director, WHO Department of Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals
Anuradha Gupta, Deputy CEO, Vaccine Alliance (GAVI)
Nagwa Nashat Hegazy, Director of the Medical Education and Human Resources Development Center in the Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University (Family doctor -WONCA)
Kwaku Agyemang-Manu, Minister of Health, Ghana
Jane Ruth Aceng Ocero, Minister of Health, Uganda (TBC)
Discussant
Feng Zhao, World Bank
Closing
Alexey Tsoy, Minister of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Zsuzsanna Jakab, Deputy-Director General, WHO