WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica signed the next phase of the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) partnership programme for 2019–2022, worth € 123.75 million (US$ 135 million).
During the signing ceremony, Dr. Tedros recognized the importance of primary health care “as a cornerstone of universal health coverage” and added that “WHO has no higher priority than universal health coverage…. It not only improves health, it also helps to reduce poverty, drive inclusive economic growth and advance gender equality”.
Commissioner Mimica commented, “We will not reach our objectives on Sustainable Development Goal [SDG] 3 just by tackling specific diseases, we need a more comprehensive outlook and to make sure that the overall health system gets the financing it needs”.
The signing took place alongside the annual European Development Days event in Brussels, where Dr. Tedros and other WHO staff participated in several different sessions. This year’s event focused on “Addressing inequalities: Building a world which leaves no one behind”.
Original source: WHO
Published on 26 June 2019
