On the basis of the clear linkage between poverty and health, the WHO Regional Office for Africa has developed a strategy which explores the potential contribution of health to poverty reduction, economic growth and human development.

The overall objective of the strategy is to have the health sector, given its comparative advantage, contribute to poverty reduction by improving health. The strategy is to be discussed by the 52nd session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa scheduled for 8-12 October in Brazzaville, Congo.

It aims to :

• develop and maintain a strong advocacy platform targeting stakeholders and partners operating outside the health sector in order to sensitize them on the contribution of health to poverty reduction, and to provide orientations on how other sectors should factor heath into policies and practices to improve health outcomes ;
• address reforms in the health sector with a view to shifting the focus of health systems away from an overly curative approach to a more preventive and promotional pattern of health intervention, and
• strengthen and promote the capacity of the most vulnerable groups with direct and specific interventions.

The strategy document also enumerates five principles which should guide the implementation of the strategy. These are : equity and fairness of services ; quality, (financial and geographical) accessibility as well as sustainability of services ; community participation and gender sensitivity ; intersectorality and partnership, and a strong monitoring and evaluation mechanism.

Seven priority interventions are proposed in the strategy document. These are:

• generating evidence on the linkages between health and other socioeconomic sectors (education, transport, agriculture, energy, chemicals, tourism) for advocacy outside the health sector; 

• setting up a transparent resource allocation mechanism with a view to recording the responsiveness of interventions to poverty reduction objectives; 

• extending health coverage (infrastructure, mobile units and health services, including antenatal care and birth attendance) to underserved areas for the benefit of vulnerable populations; 

• reinforcing immunization programmes against childhood illnesses through regular monitoring and mobilization of adequate funding; 

• strengthening environmental health services, including safe water, nutrition, safe food and hygiene education; 

• strengthening health promotion initiatives to improve health and prevent diseases, particularly those afflicting the poor; 

• scaling up interventions against malaria, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and childhood illnesses.

Specific roles are assigned to various stakeholders in the health as well as in non-health sectors to facilitate the achievement of overall poverty-reduction objectives.

WHO estimates that more than 45 % of the population of the African Region fall under the poverty-line definition which characterizes as "poor" anyone who cannot afford a daily consumption rate of US$1. The heavy burden of diseases in the Region causes significant loss in output which in turn accentuates the gap between the actual and potential growth in the Region.

Poverty is on the rise in Africa, causing deterioration in social and economic indicators - particularly life expectancy, child and infant mortality, and morbidity due to malaria, TB and HIV/AIDS. 

Public Information and Communication Unit
World Health Organization - Regional Office for Africa 
P.O. Box 6 Brazzaville, Congo. 
Tel: + 1 321 953 9378; Fax: 1 321 953 9513 
In Harare: Mobile 091 231 405