Approximately 80% of the World Health
Organization (WHO)’s humanitarian caseload and 70% of disease outbreaks that
WHO responds to take place in Fragile, Conflict affected and Vulnerable (FCV)
settings. Armed conflict obstructs the delivery of equitable healthcare and can
directly affect health systems, including the collapse of medical supply
chains; the exodus of health care workers; attacks on health care and upsurges
in disease outbreak and food insecurity. As health disparities often exacerbate
social tensions, health equity and robust health systems can also foster social
cohesion and trust. As such, sustaining peace and achieving equitable
healthcare are mutually dependent and reinforce objectives that are
critical to long-term violence prevention.
To respond
to the complex and urgent health needs emerging in a rapidly changing world
order, WHO-with the championing of Oman and Switzerland-launched the Global
Health and Peace Initiative (GHPI) in November 2019 with the aim of better
addressing the underlying drivers of critical health needs in fragile,
conflict-affected and vulnerable settings. Addressing those social determinants
of health which aggravate existing inequalities and vulnerabilities is critical
for achieving sustainable health outcomes globally.
The objective of the first session of this webinar series is to provide an overview of – and discuss – the Global Health and Peace Initiative, what it is and is not; and to illustrate what ‘Health and Peace programming’ can look like through the case of a WHO-IOM project implemented in Cameroon titled ‘Peace through health: Peacebuilding and violence reduction in communities in the far-north through inclusive health and social interventions’ (2021-2023), funded by the Peacebuilding Fund (PBF).
Speakers
Altaf Musani, Director, Health Emergencies Interventions (HEI), WHO
Mathilde Boddaert, Technical Officer, GHPI, WHO
Dr Claver Lotsa Momo, Peace through Health Project Coordinator, WHO Cameroon