Brazzaville, 25 June 2007 -- The Programme Subcommittee (PSC) of the WHO African Region ended its deliberation in Brazzaville at the weekend after reviewing its composition, revising its terms of reference and reviewing documents to be discussed at the fifty-seventh session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa (RC57) scheduled for 27-31 August, also in the Congolese capital.

PSC was first established in 1975 as the Programme Budget Subcommittee which provided succinct and informative advice in the form of reports that aided decision-making by the WHO Regional Committee for Africa, the annual meeting of health ministries from the 46 Member States which constitute the WHO African Region.

However, over the years, challenges such as the increasing number of agenda items of the Regional Committee necessitated a revision of its composition and terms of reference to allow it play an enhanced role in deliberations of the Regional Committee.

Among the proposals made by the meeting were that the PSC, which currently comprises 12 members, should be made up of 16 representatives from Member States. In addition, three members from the African Region on the WHO Executive Board should participate in PSC meetings. The meeting also proposed that the Regional Director be authorized to invite experts in various fields, as required, to attend PSC meetings.

The just-concluded PSC meeting also reviewed technical documents on subjects which will be discussed by RC57. These include cholera; the improvement of health system performance; key social determinants of health; public health, innovation and intellectual property, and the harmful use of alcohol. It also reviewed three strategy documents developed by the Regional Office. These are on accelerating the elimination of avoidable blindness; diabetes prevention and control, and the control of the dual epidemic of tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. The WHO Programme Budget for 2008 – 2009 and orientations for its implementation in the African Region was also reviewed by participants.

Closing the meeting, WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Luis Sambo, expressed satisfaction with the high quality of technical discussion and suggestions for improving the documents to be discussed at RC57.

He also expressed the hope that once the documents revised by the PSC have been reviewed and adopted by RC57, governments and other health partners will hasten the implementation of proposed priority health interventions with a view to positively impacting on the health status of people in the African Region.

For more information contact:
 

Samuel T. Ajibola
Tel: + 47 241 39378

WHO Regional Office for Africa, BP 6, Brazzaville, Congo.

E-mail: ajibolas [at] afro.who.int