World Health Assembly continues with report on the health of women, children and adolescents, discussion on the impacts of climate change
Geneva, May 25, 2023 (PAHO/WHO) – Discussions on issues of importance to the countries of the Americas continue at the 76th World Health Assembly, taking place this week (May 21-30). ) in Geneva, Switzerland.
On May 24, a progress report on the Global Strategy for the Health of Women, Children and Adolescents (2016-2030) was launched, urging countries to increase investment in family planning interventions and routine postnatal care for women and newborns in an effort to reduce maternal and infant mortality.
The report highlighted that in most regions of the world, with the exception of Southeast Asia, maternal and infant mortality rates have either stagnated or increased. Most of these deaths are preventable and result from a lack of access to sexual and reproductive health services, as well as prenatal care.
In Latin America and the Caribbean, nearly 8,400 women die each year from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth, with a disproportionate impact on poor women and women of minority ethnic origin. Approximately 9 out of 10 of these deaths are preventable.
During the discussion, the countries of the Americas highlighted the importance of recovering progress towards maternal mortality after the COVID-19 pandemic, with a particular focus on women from vulnerable populations, as well as strengthening mental health initiatives. for teens.
The WHO Global Strategy provides countries with a roadmap to end preventable maternal, newborn and child deaths, including stillbirths, by 2030, as well as to improve their overall health and well-being.
During a strategic roundtable on the role of the health community in climate action, which also took place on May 24 and included interventions by the CEO of COP28, Adnan Z. Amin, and the first US Presidential Envoy for the climate, John Kerry, participants underscored the intrinsic link between climate change and health.
In recent decades, climate change has led to an increase in extreme weather events such as hurricanes and floods, as well as an increase in vector-borne and infectious diseases.
This is of particular concern in the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) of the Caribbean, which are on the front lines of the impact of climate change in the Region and yet contribute a comparatively minimal percentage of greenhouse gas emissions. greenhouse effect, one of the main drivers of global warming.
During the round table, the participants highlighted that health should be a powerful argument to promote the call to action in response to climate change in the run-up to COP28.
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