Divisional directors,
Dear colleagues,
Ladies and gentlemen
I warmly welcome you all to Brazzaville, specifically to WHO-AFRO and to the Regional Consultation on WHO Health Research Strategy.
As you are well aware, research plays a crucial role in improving global health and health equity by developing and evaluating interventions.
Besides, WHO’s commitment to research is explicit in its 1946 Constitution, namely “to promote and conduct research in the field of health” (Article 2(n)).
Moreover, 3 of the 6 core functions of the Organisation directly reflect this commitment:
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Shaping the research agenda and stimulating the generation, translation and dissemination of valuable knowledge
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Setting norms and standards, and promoting and monitoring their implementation, and
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Articulating ethical and evidence-based policy options
Furthermore, in response to resolution WHA58.34 on the Ministerial Summit on Health Research, the Secretariat drafted a position paper describing WHO’s role and responsibilities in the area of health research on the basis of an initial assessment of WHO activities in this area.
In May 2007, the World Health Assembly adopted Resolution WHA60.15 on WHO’s role and responsibilities in health research. This resolution requested the Director-General to submit to the Sixty-second World Health Assembly a strategy for the management and organization of research activities within WHO. The WHO Research Strategy will be presented to the Executive Board in January 2009 and at the 62nd World Health Assembly in May 2009. Initial consultations helped in defining five provisional guiding principles of stewardship, quality, cohesion, convener and capacity-building As part of these wide consultations within WHO (HQ and its Regional and Country Offices) the WHO Regional office for Africa has involved the Divisional and WHO country focal persons to contribute towards the development of this strategy.
As Divisional and country office focal person of Information, Research and Knowledge management, you contributed directly recently in several activities to prepare to the Second Global Ministerial Conference on Research on Health in 2008. The WHO Regional Committee at its Fifth-sixth Session held in Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia, selected Mali to host the Conference. However, as part of the preparations towards the Conference, our Region also agreed to a Conference of African Ministers of Health, Science & Technology and Education to be hosted by Algeria in June 2008 in order to agree on a common African voice on Research for Health to be presented at the Bamako Global Ministerial Conference.
Dear colleagues:
In the next 2 days, you will be updated on the process of developing the WHO research strategy, but most important, you will contribute to its content and ensure that regional perspectives are taken into account in the strategy. This is a way for your ownership of this strategy in prevision to its implementation.
As contained in the Regional Committee documents, which are in your folders, WHO will continue to promote the message that research is fundamental to generating knowledge to improve health outcomes and contribute to achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It will continue to promote the message that evidence must inform the design and implementation of health programmes as well as all attempts to reform and strengthen health systems. It will also advocate for increased funding from governments, donors and lenders for health research.
The organization will also continue to support Member States strengthen their national health research systems; develop capacity to conduct health research; identify health research priorities; evaluate research results; and the translation of knowledge to solve health-related problems.
However, in order to contribute to health development and achieve the internationally agreed health-related development goals, including those contained in the MDGs, Member States are urged to accelerate efforts to mobilize and allocate more resources for strengthening their national health research systems and also create mechanisms to translate the outcomes of research into actions.
Dear colleagues:
As focal person for research in countries and in the Regional office, your continuing support to the preparations of the 2008 Global Ministerial Conference on Research for Health will be most appreciated and your recommendations highly valued.
In conclusion, I would, once again, like to thank you for your contribution to this important consultation, and for your follow-up of its implementation.
I would also like to thank Dr Tikki Pang, the Director of RPC/HQ, and his colleagues who have travelled to Brazzaville for this consultation, and for their their support.
On this note, I now declare open the Regional Consultation on WHO Health Research Strategy and wish you fruitful deliberations.
Thank you for your attention.