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As the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) met to discuss the role of partnerships in achieving the Post-2015 development agenda, the focus fell on the recent response to the Ebola crisis in West Africa and the need to work together to boost capacity in healthcare systems.
Martin Sajdik, President of the Council, opened the meeting by stressing the importance of partnerships, especially in the context of the transition from the Millennium Development Goals to the post-2015 development agenda and he introduced a keynote speaker, in Bill Clinton, the former President of the United States, who he said was “truly outstanding” and who would discuss health partnerships, especially for strengthening health systems.
In an opening keynote address to the ECOSOC Partnership Forum, Mr. Clinton described the huge impact of Ebola on West Africa and the huge effort made by many stakeholders, including non-governmental organizations, international organizations and the private sector, in its aftermath. During a recent visit to the region, he said he heard the same call again and again: “Help us build our health systems.”
Countries in the region were requesting funds to build better, stronger health systems through multi-year plans. If the donor community set aside 15 per cent of relief funds over a three- to seven-year span to build up those systems, “we wouldn’t have to worry about these problems,” he said, urging donor nations to help strengthen health sectors, which would save money in the long-run and make nations more self-sufficient.
“They have to have health systems or we’ll be back here four or five years from now – not in these countries but in some other countries,” said Mr. Clinton. “It is the most economically sensible thing to do.”
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Source & Copyright: UN News Centre