Blog: Working towards health for all - Hoofdinhoud

Overcoming poverty and improving health systems are two sides of the same coin

In the calendar of the European Year for Development, the month of April is devoted to “health” - an area that has been an important pillar of EU cooperation for many years. The reason is simple: Overcoming poverty and improving health systems in the poorest countries in the world are inextricably linked.

In too many countries, when people fall sick this often means that they also risk slipping into poverty. Similarly, poverty and social exclusion far too often generate ill-health. A healthy population and a health system that can deliver basic services to everyone are needed for any country to develop and grow. The biggest challenges in many places are still infectious diseases, reproductive health and rights and under-nutrition, but chronic diseases are an increasing burden on many societies as well.

The EU therefore supports policies that promote universal access to quality health services, and I am determined personally to reinvigorate this support. Between 2007 and 2013, the EU funded health action in 43 developing countries with €3.2 billion; 40% of these countries are fragile, affected by conflict or emerging from conflicts. Most of the money went into bilateral support.

For example, the EU has provided €341 million for health in Afghanistan since 2001, making it possible for the government to provide basic health and essential hospital services. These serve 21 provinces in Afghanistan, some of which are in the most insecure and remote areas of the country. 406 health facilities were supported by the EU in 2012, reaching a total population of over 5.2 million; more than 100,000 child births were assisted by health professionals that year, contributing to improved health of children and mothers in Afghanistan.

From 2014-2020, the EU will spend another €2.7 billion on health-related aid. A substantial share of this will continue to go into global health initiatives which pool international funding to support countries on specific health issues.

The main example is the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which has been active in 140 countries so far and which the European Commission has been supporting since its inception in 2000. As a result of its work, 7.3 million people receive antiretroviral therapy for AIDS, 12.3 million people have been tested and treated for tuberculosis, and 450 million insecticide-treated nets have been distributed to protect families against malaria.

Similarly, the European Commission is supporting GAVI in their goal to immunise another 300 million children until 2020, in addition to the half-a-billion they immunised since 2000. This can save another 5 to 6 million children. Additional efforts by many donors were impressive: around € 6.6 million have been raised in the GAVI Conference in January 2015, in Berlin. The EU will contribute € 200 million to the GAVI Alliance for the 2016-2020 period.

The recent devastating Ebola crisis in West Africa reminds us about the critical importance of further improving global cooperation on comprehensive access to basic healthcare service. I was very touched by the story of Papus, an Ebola survivor, who is helping in the fight against the spread of the disease as a health promoter. His inspirational account is a reminder of how precious health is in everyone’s life and that we need to work even hard to protect everyone's health.