PMNCH

11 December 2020 - On the eve of Universal Health Coverage Day, more than 1,600 viewers from 100+ countries who registered, tuned into a three-hour live broadcast co-hosted by PMNCH, CORE Group and UHC2030. The summit focused on the consequences of COVID-19 for universal health coverage (UHC) and progress for women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health.

This summit, built on the very successful Lives in the Balance: A COVID-19 Summit, in July 2020, where partners came together to call on global leaders to commit to PMNCH’s seven-point action plan for improving and increasing investment in health systems and social protection policies for women, children and adolescents as the world rebuilds in the wake of the pandemic.

Six months after the launch of the call to action, during the live event, a group of countries (including Afghanistan, India, Kenya, Liberia and Nigeria; as well as donor countries Canada, Germany, Sweden, United Kingdom and the USA, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation); answered the PMNCH Call by announcing domestic policy and financial commitments amounting to $20.6 billion to improve the health of women, children and adolescents as part of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These country commitments spanning multiple sectors will contribute to the realization of the Call to Action, helping to ensure women, adolescents and children can access health services and priority social protections throughout the COVID-19 crisis and recovery periods.

Staged to mark Universal Health Coverage Day on the theme of Health For All: Protect Everyone, the event also provided a backdrop for the presentation of key findings from a recent report from UHC2030 on the State of commitment to universal health coverage; synthesis 2020. The report charts current global progress one year on from the groundbreaking UN High Level Meeting which reaffirmed world governments’ commitment to achieving UHC and ensuring healthy lives and wellbeing for all by 2030.

Similar to the first Summit, the December event boasted a host of high-level speakers, break-out sessions, live performances and a Leadership Dialogue moderated by PMNCH Board Chair Helen Clark with guests that included Gro Harlem Brundtland, Co-Chair of the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board; Graça Machel, Founder and Chair of the Graça Machel Trust; Loyce Pace, President and Executive Director of the Global Health Council and Minister Adrien Taquet from France. A full list of speakers can be found here.

Throughout the three hours, the event covered themes such as the importance of strong political will and leadership to ensure global health security; harnessing the opportunities that innovative digital health technologies provide to improve health during the response and recovery efforts; and the power of partnership, collaboration and solidarity to ensure that no one is left behind.

Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, joined the hosts in the closing session of the event with a call for global solidarity and continued vigilance on the ripple effects of COVID-19 even as the world begins to emerge from the pandemic. Then, in a candid exchange with Summit moderator Mercy Juma of BBC Africa, Danielle Mullings Young Expert: Tech for Health, pointed to the potential of digital tools in helping young people during the pandemic and urged leaders to prioritize and involve young people in the response to COVID-19.

Finally, event co-hosts Helga Fogstad Executive Director of PMNCH; Agnès Soucat, Director, Department of Health Systems Governance and Financing at WHO and Lisa Hilmi Executive Director, CORE Group; joined together to underline the importance of partnership and continued commitment and momentum to ensure universal health coverage for women, children and adolescents.

Lives in the Balance will return in May 2021 with details coming soon.

Recorded event is available on the summit website, which also includes further resources for information and advocacy.