"Research For Health" Global Ministerial Forum Begins Monday In Mali

Main Category: Public Health
Article Date: 18 Nov 2008 - 2:00 PST

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A unique blend of political, research, industry and civil society leaders will meet in Bamako, Mali 17-19 November in an attempt to direct research to better meet the needs of poor countries. They will discuss strategies for national and global research for health that address inequities in health, foster greater health security and strengthen health systems. Building on a Ministerial Summit held in Mexico in 2004, the Global Ministerial Forum on Research for Health will review progress on commitments, identify lessons learned and issue a Call to Action reflecting priorities for moving forward.

The forum is unique in several ways:

o It is the first such gathering to consider the perspective of 'research for health' - looking at how all kinds of research -- not only health research but also higher education, environment, security and socio-economic research -- can be harnessed to improve health.

o It will be a dialogue between policy makers, research leaders and civil society representatives to encourage better cooperation on research that improves people's health.

The six partners in the forum are the: Council on Health Research for Development (COHRED); Global Forum for Health Research; Republic of Mali; United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); World Bank and World Health Organization (WHO).

Special panels of two or more top researchers and policy experts will speak to journalists Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 15:30 - 17:00. These discussions will be provided via an audio feed on the meeting website at www.tropika.net/bamako, and journalists are welcome to submit questions for the Q&A session via bamako@tropika.net. Photos of the meeting will also be available on the website.

Detailed information on the programme and participants is at http://www.bamako2008.org.

Call To Action

On Wednesday, 19 November, the forum is expected to release a Call to Action on research for health that can be used as a blueprint for research development approaches and necessary support.

WHO