Brazzaville, 5 April 2011 -- Health Ministers and Heads of Country delegations currently in Brazzaville for the WHO African Region Ministerial Consultation on Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) were briefed on the work of the World Health Organization (WHO) at the Regional Office on Tuesday 5 April 2011.

The meeting took place on the side lines of the ongoing three-day consultation which began on 4-6 April 2011.

Welcoming the delegates, the Regional Director expressed his appreciation for their participation in this forum and underscored the importance of briefing the Ministers on the work of the Organization and exchange views on how best to enhance WHO’s support towards health development of countries.

He gave an overview of the missions, functions, global and regional structures of WHO and pointed out that the ongoing financial crisis is having a negative impact on the work of WHO resulting in some competent staff being separated form the organization . It was revealed that over the years the organization’s finances have come to be dependent solely on 80% of voluntary contributions and 20% of assessed contributions.

Dr Sambo observed that there are increasing number of international players in the health arena and WHO plays a key role in supporting countries to benefit from these partnerships. He cited the Harmonization for Health in Africa (HHA). International Health Partnership plus (IHP +) and Global Health Initiatives such as GAVI, GFATM and others as examples of initiatives in which WHO is actively involved.

Delegates were also briefed on WHO’s programme structure, evolution of the budget, Global Management System, Strategic Directions 2010-2015, progress towards the health MDGs and Health priorities in the region and perspectives. Dr Paul Lusamba-Dikassa, Director of Programme Management told the delegates that the organization’s Medium Term Strategic Plan (MTSP) which stems from the 11th General Programme of Work (GPW) has 13 strategic objectives and provides the strategic direction for its work for a six-year period as well as preparation of the biennium budget and operational plans.

He cited the limited progress made towards the MDGs and the growing NCDs burden which is adding to the already existing communicable diseases. The threat of outbreaks such as cholera, meningitis polio and others to the health security of populations in the region was also highlighted.

Dr Paul Lusamba-Dikassa, Director of Programme Management observed that to enhance the efficiency of administrative and business processes, the organization implemented a single and integrated management system (GSM) as a tool to support the delivery of WHO technical programmes. He concluded his presentation by indicating that at the regional level, WHO’s work is guided by the Strategic directions for WHO in the African Region 2010-2015 which is based on WHO’s mandate and core functions as articulated in its constitution and the GPW. The six priority areas are: i) continued focus on WHO’s leadership role in the provision of normative and policy guidance as well as strengthening partnerships and harmonization, ii) supporting the strengthening of health systems based on the primary health care approach; iii) putting the health of mothers and children first, iv) Accelerated actions on HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, v) intensifying the prevention and control of communicable and noncommunicable diseases, and accelerating response to the determinants of health.

The importance of strengthening health systems including Health Financing for Health and Social Protection was underscored in a presentation by Dr Chris Mwikisa, Acting Director of the Health Systems Strengthening Cluster. He said the six building blocks of health systems, namely;i) service delivery, ii) health workforce, iii) health financing, iv) health information, v) medical products, vaccines and technologies; vi) leadership and governance are interlinked such that their concurrent strengthening leads to improved access, coverage, quality and safety as intermediate outcomes.

The Ministers of Health and the representatives commended WHO for this forum and called for subsequent sessions to be organized for senior public health officials within their respective ministries in the region.

Delegates shared experiences and discussed a range of issues during which it was proposed that in the light of the current financial crisis facing WHO, Member States financial contribution to the work of the organisation should be revised particularly assessed contributions. Giving the urgency of the crisis, a requested was made for this issue to be considered as an agenda item for the forthcoming Programme Sub Committee and Regional Committee.

The need for flexibility in accommodating emerging health needs in the preparation of the medium term strategic plan was also discussed as well as detailed assessment of the benefits of GSM. The relationship of dietary habits to NCDs was also highlighted as an issue that need to be researched.

With regards to health financing, delegates placed emphasis on moving towards prepayment using revenue collected through taxes, insurance and donations. They further stressed the critical role of effective leadership and governance in the efficient use of available resources.

Given the many health disasters occurring in the Region, some Member States echoed the need to contribute to a regional public health emergency fund in order to respond effectively to these crises. Cross border collaboration in addressing public health issues of common interest was also discussed.

Referring to the Africa’s current shortage of health workers (HW) estimated at least 817 992 (physicians, nurses & midwives), it was noted that in order to meet this shortfall, most countries would have to increase the size of their HW by at least 140% and their institutional capacity to produce additional health workers

Delegates agreed that medical products and health technologies are perhaps the areas where most of the wastage occurs as a result of weak procurement processes, poor storage, inefficient distribution, poor diagnosis, poly-pharmacy, leakage and inconsistent inventory and record keeping. There was consensus that most of the investments in these areas be targeted towards reducing wastage.

While it was clear that strengthening of district health systems involves some form of decentralization, caution was required to prevent huge discrepancies among districts. Central governments need to ensure that agreements with districts meet the minimum requirement for the districts to provide a comprehensive package of essential health services to their catchment population.

It was also emphasized that housing for doctors and nurses especially in rural areas is pre-eminently important in promoting staff motivation and retention. Emphasis was also placed on the importance of improving health information systems and infrastructure including medical and laboratory equipment.

Media Contact: AFRO Communication Team: Tel: +47-241-39378/ 39420/39352/39382; E-mail: cam [at] afro.who.int