WHA79 urges system strengthening

The Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly is meeting in Geneva from May 18 to May 23, bringing together delegations from WHO member states as governments and partner groups push health-system issues back to the center of global health talks. (who.int) WHO’s published agenda and side-event schedule show this week’s discussions spanning pandemic readiness, primary care, workforce pressures, financing and service delivery. A cluster of events on May 18 and May 19 focused on how countries fund and organize routine care while also preparing for emergencies. (apps.who.int) WHO says the assembly is also hosting strategic roundtables with delegates, civil society and partner agencies on current public-health priorities. (who.int) ### Why are delegates talking about “system strengthening” at this assembly? WHO’s WHA79 agenda includes an update on “strengthening health emergency prevention, preparedness, response and resilience,” tying pandemic readiness directly to broader health-system capacity. In a report prepared for the assembly, WHO said the HEPR framework is meant to help countries prevent, detect and respond to threats while strengthening health-system resilience. The May 19 strategic roundtable at WHO headquarters is framed around lessons from COVID-19 and how those lessons have been translated into institutional reforms and national capacities. WHO says the discussion will examine how post-pandemic innovations are shaping emergency response and complementing member-state efforts to improve prevention, preparedness and response at national, regional and global levels. (who.int) ### Where does primary care fit into this week’s events? A May 18 official side event titled “Shaping Future Health Systems for Equity and Access in Digital Era — From Vision to Practice” was co-sponsored by China, Ethiopia, Oman, South Africa, Spain, Tanzania, Thailand, Peru and Brazil. (apps.who.int) Another May 18 event, “Africa’s Public Health and Primary Health Care, Solidarity and Sovereignty Agenda,” brought together Zimbabwe, Eswatini, South Africa and regional public-health partners. A separate May 19 side event on healthy longevity linked prevention, primary care, productivity and digital innovation, with Qatar, Finland, Japan and health groups among the organizers. The scheduling across two days shows primary care being discussed not as a stand-alone program but alongside ageing, financing, equity and digital systems. (who.int) ### Why is midwifery getting dedicated attention? An official WHA79 side event on May 18 was devoted to “Midwifery Models of Care for People-Centred Health Systems to Achieve Universal Health Coverage.” WHO’s side-event schedule lists the International Confederation of Midwives as organizer, with Bangladesh, Egypt, Ethiopia, Luxembourg, Nepal, Sweden, the United Kingdom and Zambia as co-sponsors. (apps.who.int) The International Confederation of Midwives said the event was intended to put midwives “on the agenda” at WHA79. UNFPA, in separate material published this month, said the world needs 1 million more midwives by 2035 to save more than 4 million lives a year, underscoring why workforce expansion is being linked to maternal and newborn care in Geneva. (apps.who.int) ### How did workforce and financing concerns show up? Germany and partners including Ethiopia, France, India, Indonesia and the Philippines scheduled a May 19 side event on “Sustaining the Global Health and Care Workforce Agenda in times of financial challenges?” The wording of that session points to a practical concern running through the assembly: countries are discussing staffing needs at the same time many health budgets are under pressure. (apps.who.int) Japan, Nigeria, UHC2030, the UN Foundation and other partners also hosted a May 18 session on country-led health financing “amid fiscal constraints.” Another May 19 event organized by Africa CDC and partners focused on building the economic case for domestic investment in health research and development in Africa. (internationalmidwives.org) ### Where does animal health enter the conversation? WHO’s WHA79 main documents include a draft updated global action plan on antimicrobial resistance for 2026-2036, placing cross-sector health issues on the formal assembly agenda. That matters because animal health investment is often discussed within broader “One Health” and antimicrobial-resistance work rather than as a stand-alone hospital issue. (apps.who.int) GALVmed, an animal-health nonprofit cited in social discussion around WHA79, says 60% of human infectious diseases are transmitted from animals and has argued this year for closing what it called an innovation and investment gap in animal health. WHO has not listed a dedicated WHA79 side event under GALVmed’s name in the official schedules reviewed, but the assembly’s AMR and emergency-resilience agenda provides the formal channel where those animal-health arguments fit. (apps.who.int) ### What happens next in Geneva? WHO says WHA79 proceedings and strategic roundtables are being webcast from Geneva through May 23. The next strategic roundtables listed by WHO include a May 20 discussion on integrated responses to noncommunicable diseases and mental health, followed by a May 21 session on health mis- and dis-information. (apps.who.int) (who.int) (galvmed.org)