Burnet Institute welcomes efforts to better support countries over the next decade to accelerate progress towards the health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Coordinated by the World Health Organization, the Stronger Collaboration, Better Health: Global Action Plan for Healthy Lives and Well-being for All outlines how 12 leading multilateral health, development and humanitarian agencies will improve collaboration and provide streamlined support to countries to deliver universal health coverage and achieve the health-related SDG targets.

Burnet Director and CEO, Professor Brendan Crabb AC reinforced that although significant gains have been made in key areas of health globally, the 2030 SDG targets will not be met without increased efforts.

“Improvement in health of the most vulnerable people drives greater equity and leads to a more sustainable, secure and prosperous world. To leave no one behind, countries need to address health inequities.”

Together, the 12 multilateral agencies contribute nearly one-third of all development assistance to health. Improved collaboration and coordination can help countries tackle complex health challenges and bring innovative solutions.

Under the Global Action Plan, the agencies commit to strengthening their collaboration to:

• Engage with countries better to identify priorities, plan and implement together

• Accelerate progress in countries through joint actions under seven accelerator themes: 1) Primary health care 2) Sustainable health financing 3) Community and civil society engagement 4) Determinants of health 5) Innovative programming in fragile and vulnerable settings and for disease outbreak responses 6) Research and development, innovation and access 7) Data and digital health

• Align by harmonising their operational and financial strategies and policies in support of countries to increase efficiency and reduce the burden on countries

• Account by reviewing progress and learning together to enhance shared accountability.

“The plan is called, Stronger Collaboration, Better Health for a reason. Although collaboration is the path, impact is the destination.” - Director-General of WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Through the Global Action Plan, the agencies will help countries deliver on international commitments in addition to the SDGs, such as those made at the UN General Assembly High-level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage in New York.

The 12 signatory agencies to the plan are Gavi, The GFF, the Global Fund, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNITAID, UN Women, World Bank Group, WFP and WHO.

Read more here.

Earlier this week world leaders adopted a high-level United Nations Political Declaration on universal health coverage (UHC). Read more.