By Aliyu DANALDI
The UN has, on the International Universal Health Coverage Day, stressed the need for universal health care for all and leaving no one behind by 2030.
The UN said 2030 is the target date for completion of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), one of which (SDG3), calls for the promotion of healthy lives and well-being for all.
The International Day is supported by Universal Health Care 2030 (UHC2030), a global partnership consisting of Member States, several UN Agencies - including WHO, UNICEF, UNDP – and civil society organisations.
The aim is to raise awareness of the need for strong and resilient health systems and universal health coverage by sharing the stories of the millions of people still waiting for health care.
The International Day also aims at championing what has been achieved so far, and calling on decision-makers to make bigger and smarter investments in health, moving the world closer to UHC by 2030.
In 2012, the UN General Assembly unanimously endorsed a resolution urging countries to accelerate progress toward universal health coverage.
The idea of the resolution is that everyone, everywhere should have access to quality, affordable health care – as an essential priority for international development.
In 2017 the General Assembly made December 12 the official UN-designated International Day for Universal Health Coverage.
The International Day has been backed by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who said in a statement that “strong leadership and community engagement were essential in ensuring that all people get the healthcare they need.
“On this International Day, let us reaffirm our commitment to a world with health for all.”
The 2018 Day is being celebrated two months after Member States unanimously vowed to strengthen primary health care, as an “essential step” towards achieving health coverage for all, at Global Conference on Primary Health Care in Astana, Kazakhstan in October.
The commitment was made as a global movement grows for greater investment in primary health care to achieve universal health coverage.
However, so far, health resources have been overwhelmingly focused on single disease interventions rather than strong, comprehensive health systems – a gap highlighted by several health emergencies in recent years, said the UN agencies.
