The Global Health Programme has been designated a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Governance for Health and Global Health Diplomacy. WHO collaborating centres are designated by the Director-General to conduct activities that support the Organization’s programmes as part of an international network. The policy dates back to the Second World Health Assembly in 1949, where it was decided that rather than create research institutions within the Organization, it should coordinate with existing institutions already advancing research in the field of health.
The collaboration benefits both parties, as the WHO is able to tap into resources beyond their own in fulfilling their mandated activities, and collaborating centres gain increased visibility and recognition of their work, as well as access to a significant international network. Speaking on Collaborating Centres at the Sixty-fourth World Health Assembly in 2011, Director-General Margaret Chan stated: "In everything we do, WHO relies on the expertise of hundreds of formal WHO Collaborating Centres, in your countries, and thousands of the best brains in science, medicine, and public health, in your countries. They give us their time freely and it is my strong impression that they do so with pride."
Indeed, the Global Health Programme is proud to be included among this network and to offer our expertise on global governance for health and global health diplomacy. In doing so, the GHP will aim to foster research in global health diplomacy linked to Health in All Policies (HiAP), contribute to improved governance for health and HiAP, and provide guidance on the implementation of social and environmental determinants of health through research outputs, training and education, and the provision of technical advice to WHO. Accordingly, this work will serve the WHO’s programmatic goal to increase country capacity to implement a HiAP approach, intersectoral action, and social participation to address the social determinants of health.
Read more about WHO Collaborating Centres here.
Photo: World Health Organization