WHO

World Health Organization Executive Board 152nd Session

The 152nd session of the Executive Board takes place on 30 January – 7 February 2023. Proceedings will be webcast from this page:

who.int/about/governance/executive-board/executive-board-152nd-session

The Executive Board is composed of 34 technically qualified members elected for three-year terms. The main functions of the Board are to implement the decisions and policies of the Health Assembly, and to advise and generally facilitate its work.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@yahoo.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee for Rare Diseases, please visit ngocommitteerarediseases.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Children’s Rights/NY, please visit childrightsny.org.

Prayer Service for Children and Young People

Join ACT Alliance, Caritas Internationalis, The Episcopal Church, World Council of Churches and World Vision in prayer for children and young people and for world leaders to give them life in all its fullness, on 8am Eastern at the Church Center for the UN in NYC on Monday, Sept. 19, on the margins of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly.

The multiple and interconnected crisis and conflicts facing the world have serious and devastating psychological, physical and social impact on children and young people. Over 78 million are out of school; 120 million who are attending school are not achieving required proficiency; and overall 222 million children and young people are in need of educational support. Failing health systems have resulted in 25 million children missing out on one or more doses of critical vaccines. It is the largest drop in a generation, according to UNICEF and WHO. On top of this gap, children are facing severe acute malnutrition, which weakens their immunity; this together with missed vaccines, threatens their very lives. Hunger crisis and immunization gaps converge into a real crisis for the survival, development and protection of children and young people.

We call on world leaders gathering at the United Nations to rally around urgent actions to save entire generations of children and young people.

Learn more and register here: eventbrite.com/e/prayer-service-for-children-and-young-people-tickets-407996958887

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, please visit rngos.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Children’s Rights/NY, please visit childrightsny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the vice chair at susanneseperson@gmail.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@yahoo.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN. 

[deadline for inputs] Draft guidance on Mental Health, Human Rights, and Legislation published jointly by WHO & OHCHR

Call for inputs: Draft guidance on Mental Health, Human Rights, and Legislation published jointly by WHO and OHCHR

Purpose: The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) invites Member States, and relevant regional and international intergovernmental organizations; national human rights institutions, equality bodies, United Nations funds, programmes, and specialized agencies, organizations of persons with disabilities and other civil society organizations, experts, academia and any other interested party to provide written input on the draft and to contribute to its development.

Submission Format + Where to Submit

Please include in your submission:

  1. The name of the individual and organisation making the written submission.
  2. The number of the section(s) to which your submission refers and page number. You may provide information on as many or as few sections as may be relevant in the form of:
    1. Concise comments;
    2. Specific proposed alternative text, if relevant;
  3. Word limit: Less than 5,300 words;
  4. In English, Spanish, or French. Submissions will not be translated;
  5. In Word format. Please do not provide inputs in the text or margin of the draft. Submit inputs in a separate Word document.
  6. Please include hyperlinks to relevant websites, documents, statistical data, public regulations and legislation providing more detailed information.

Please send contributions by email to: harumi.fuentes@un.org by 31 August 2022 with the email subject line: Input for joint guidance WHO-OHCHR

Download the draft joint WHO/OHCHR guidance here: ohchr.org/en/calls-for-input/calls-input/draft-guidance-mental-health-human-rights-legislation-who-ohchr

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Mental Health, please visit ngomentalhealth.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bknotts@uua.org or bobbinassar@yahoo.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, please visit crimealliance.org.

International Youth Day 2022

Official Commemoration

For International Youth Day 2022, DESA will work with the Major Group on Children and Youth (MGCY) to organize a global webinar for its official commemoration. The webinar will provide an opportunity for stakeholders around the world to exchange views on the topic of intergenerational solidarity, intergenerational equity, future generations, and ageism. 

To ensure inclusivity, the webinar will feature speakers from civil society, while ensuring age, regional and gender representation. Special consideration will be given to youth at the intersection of multiple vulnerable situations. Additionally, public institutions will be invited to share examples of efforts they are putting in place to promote intergenerational dialogue and combat ageism at the local, national, or international levels. 

To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the world needs to leverage the full potential of all generations. Solidarity across generations is key for sustainable development. We must collaborate to foster successful and equitable intergenerational relations and partnerships to ensure “no one is left behind.” While intergenerational solidarity and concern for future generations is being called for in tackling global issues – with the UN Secretary-General recently putting forward new recommendations on renewed intergenerational solidarity, including in Our Common Agenda – many challenges remain. 

Ageism continues to present a significant – yet, not sufficiently discussed – challenge to fostering collaboration and solidarity across age groups. The World Health Organization defines ageism as “the stereotypes (how we think), prejudice (how we feel) and discrimination (how we act) directed towards others or oneself, based on age.” Ageism is an insidious and often an unaddressed issue in health, human rights and development, and has bearings on both older and younger populations around the world. In addition, ageism regularly intersects with other forms of bias (such as racism and sexism) and impacts people in ways that prevent them to reach their full potential and comprehensively contribute to their community.

Objectives

In this context, the objective of this year’s International Youth Day theme, Intergenerational solidarity: Creating a World for All Ages, is to amplify the message that action is needed across all generations to achieve the SDGs and leave no one behind. The 2022 International Youth Day will also raise awareness on certain barriers to intergenerational solidarity, notably ageism, which impacts young and old persons, while having detrimental effects on society as a whole. 

This theme builds on the momentum from two side events organized by UNDESA and partners earlier this year on 1) ageism in health and employment and 2) ageism in politics on the margins of the 60th Commission for Social Development and the 11th edition of the ECOSOC Youth Forum, respectively. 

To learn more about how and why the UN commemorates International Youth Day, visit un.org/development/desa/youth/iyd2022.html.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the co-chairs at susanneseperson@gmail.com or kb16@stern.nyu.edu. For more information on the NGO Committee on Children’s Rights-NY, please visit childrightsny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@yahoo.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN.

The Contribution of Digital Literacy for Older Persons to the Decade of Healthy Ageing

The Contribution of Digital Literacy for Older Persons to the Decade of Healthy Ageing

Join us on Friday, October 29th, at 15:00 GVA time 9:00am (NY) within the Global Media and Information Literacy Week (October 24-31, 2021). This event is organized by the Group of Friends of Older Persons in NY in collaboration with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and will aim to explore the ways in which the Information and Communication Technologies can contribute to the implementation of the Decade of Healthy ageing, when it comes to ensuring the development of digitally inclusive communities that contribute to the wellbeing of all in all stages of life.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Education, Learning, and Literacy, please visit facebook.com/NGOCELLatUN. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-NY, please visit ngocoa-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Vienna, please visit ngoageingvie.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Geneva, please visit ageingcommitteegeneva.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the vice chair at susanneseperson@gmail.com. 

The State of the World’s Children Report launch

Dear colleagues and partners,

Every year, UNICEF releases its flagship The State of the World’s Children global report, examining a key issue affecting children. These have ranged from children with disabilities, conflict and war, child labour, urbanization, early childhood development, and much more, making it the most comprehensive analysis of global trends that impact children.

This year, for the first time in UNICEF’s history, The State of the World’s Children will focus on child and adolescent mental health and well-being, reflecting a priority focus on mental health across UNICEF’s global programming, advocacy and communications. Growing awareness about the importance of mental health, the impact of COVID-19, and increased evidence on the value of optimizing mental health and developmental trajectories for children and adolescents, have combined to create fresh momentum and urgency around mental health of children, youth and caregivers.

The State of the World’s Children 2021 will present new data and trends on mental health, as well as perspectives from young people, and will help to strengthen UNICEF’s policy outreach and targeted advocacy at global, regional and national levels, as well as drive action and investment to protect and promote the mental health, well-being and development of children, young people, and their families.
The State of the World’s Children 2021 report will be available here on October 5th 00/01 GMT.

Key themes will include:

  • Mental health is central to children’s health and overall well-being: As Brock Chisholm, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) first Director-General, stated, “Without mental health there can be no true physical health.”
  • Mental health is a continuum: Everyone sits somewhere on the mental health continuum, and many, if not most, people move along it at some stage – from experiencing good mental health to anything from short-term distress to long-term disabling conditions.
  • Mental health must be understood along the life course: Every stage of life – from the period around pregnancy, to early childhood and the first decade, and on to adolescence and the second decade – offers unique moments when mental health can be supported and when it may be at risk.
  • Social determinants help shape mental health outcomes: Biology and genetics play a role in determining mental health, but so too do protective and risk factors in the child’s family, in school, in the community, and across society. Understanding these is key to developing policy approaches.
  • COVID-19: The report will address evidence for the mental health impact of COVID-19, as well as challenges in humanitarian situations and emergencies.
  • Mental health requires a pyramid of interventions: A range of multi-sectoral services and institutions are needed to promote good mental health for every child, protect vulnerable children, and care for children facing the greatest challenges. Launch plans

We will launch the report on 5th October at the Ministerial Summit on Mental Health organized by the French Government in Paris, alongside a series of ‘satellite’ launch events worldwide and a new mental health communications campaign.

On 5 and 6 October 2021, the French Minister for Solidarity and Health, Olivier Véran, and the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Jean-Yves Le Drian, will host the “Mind Our Rights, Now!” Global Mental Health Summit in Paris. The summit will be attended by high-level policy makers, international organizations, health professionals, experts and civil society actors, in addition to foundations and renowned academics, all of whom aim to strengthen international efforts that support mental health, promote respect for rights and foster worldwide innovative experiences. The summit aims to sustain the momentum generated by the International Conference on Mental Health hosted by the Netherlands in October 2019, and Ministerial MH Summit in the UK before it.

Ten thematic areas have been selected to advance the objectives of the summit and are a core part of the programme. UNICEF is co-leading the workstream focusing on Children and Adolescents, with WHO and War Child, aiming to develop a set of recommendations for mental health and psychosocial support for children, adolescents, and families, which will align closely with the SOWC report. The SOWC launch is officially part of the programme on the 5th October.

The global launch will initiate a series of regional and national events around the world, involving UNICEF offices and key partners, in which we aim to spark a global conversation about child and adolescent mental health and wellbeing. ‘Satellite’ events are being explored in strategic locations across Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Asia, as well as the UAE, China and the US.

UNICEF will accompany the report launch with our new public engagement campaign, Mental Health #OnMyMind, which will provide a unifying creative concept and communications framework for all UNICEF offices and partners in support our global mental health advocacy strategy objectives over the next four years. A social media pack is available here.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Mental Health, please visit ngomentalhealth.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Children’s Rights, please visit childrightsny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the vice chair at susanneseperson@gmail.com.

2021 Geneva Peace Talks: Recovering better for an equitable & sustainable world

We are pleased to invite you and your staff to attend the 9th edition of the Geneva Peace Talks. Marking the International Day of Peace, the Geneva Peace Talks will take place on Tuesday, 21 September 2021 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. in Room XVIII at the Palais des Nations and online.

The 2021 edition is organized under the theme “Recovering better for an equitable and sustainable world”. In 2021, as we heal from the COVID-19 pandemic, we are inspired to think creatively and collectively about how to help everyone recover better. People around the world are facing not only a global health crisis, but also other imminent crises: climate change, poverty, inequalities, stigma and discrimination. We must transform our world into one that is more equal, inclusive, sustainable, and healthier. We must make peace with one another.

The event will feature speakers from a wide range of backgrounds, from health equity to environmental action. We will hear from the former Director-General of the International Committee of the Red Cross Mr. Yves Daccord, the Head of the Secretariat of the Principles for Peace Initiative Ms. Hiba Qasas, Senegalese singer and champion for climate action Mr. Baaba Maal, Chief Executive Officer of the World Health Organization Foundation Mr. Anil Soni in an interview, three high school students from the first-ever Peace Talks club, a choreographer from South Africa; as well as two film makers creating a documentary on climate refugees.

Due to COVID-19 preventive measures, only a limited number of seats will be available in Room XVIII. Early registration for in-person participation is required as it will be closed once the maximum capacity is reached.

To follow the event online or to register, please use the following link: peacetalks.net.

This year’s Geneva Peace Talks are co-organized, once again, by the United Nations Office at Geneva, Interpeace and the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform, in partnership with the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations Office and to other international organizations in Geneva.

The Geneva Peace Talks are an annual highlight of International Geneva. We look forward to your participation, which will send a strong signal of support and demonstrate our collective commitment to peace across the world.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Disarmament, Peace, and Security, please visit ngocdps.wordpress.com. For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@gmail.com or bknotts@uua.org. 

World Hepatitis Day 2021 – Hepatitis Can’t Wait

World Hepatitis Day is observed each year on 28 July to raise awareness of viral hepatitis, an inflammation of the liver that causes severe liver disease and hepatocellular cancer. This year’s theme is “Hepatitis can’t wait,” conveying the urgency of efforts needed to eliminate hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030. With a person dying every 30 seconds from a hepatitis related illness – even in the current COVID-19 crisis – we can’t wait to act on viral hepatitis.

To mark the day, WHO is hosting a Global talk show providing a platform for global, regional and national leaders, policy makers, communities and other stakeholders to discuss opportunities for accelerating the hepatitis response to achieve elimination by 2030. Contributions and stories from countries from different WHO regions will be showcased at the event. More information on speakers and registration/connectivity information will be made available shortly here: who.int/news-room/events/detail/2021/07/28/default-calendar/world-hepatitis-day-2021

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee for Rare Diseases, please visit ngocommitteerarediseases.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Human Rights, please email the co-chairs at bobbinassar@gmail.com or bknotts@uua.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Financing for Development, please visit ngosonffd.org. 

[HLPF side event] Stakeholder Group on Ageing presents “COVID-19 Pandemic: A Stress Test of Global Ageing”

SGA Official Side Event at the UN High-level Political Forum

Older persons have been among the first and hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. In many respects the pandemic could be viewed as a test of how prepared/or not Member States are for the rapidly ageing society.

Pandemics disrupt and have the potential to drive change. Only a whole-of-society, whole-of-government approach can respond effectively to the dynamic challenges of this time.

In his report, the UN Secretary-General presented new research on how longevity has the power to transform labour markets, economies and societies. The recently released WHO Global Report on Ageism shows that one in two people hold ageist attitudes towards older people.

This side event will focus on: Health and Long Term Care, Economic Development and Work and Technology in ageist environment during the pandemic

Register here: zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUofuqrrD4rG9XfaonPbRnBxmTDIDOXF4yw

Program

Welcome: Ms. Erica Dhar, Co-Chair, Stakeholder Group on Ageing

Keynote address: Prof. Andrew Scott, Professor of Economics, London Business School

Panel moderator: Dr. Jane Barratt, Secretary General, International Federation on Ageing

5 Minute Lightning Round Interventions

  • H.E. Ms. Barbro Westerholm, Member of Parliament, Sweden
  • Dr. Ad van Berlo, Chief Executive Officer and R&D Manager, Smart Homes
  • Ms. Aura Sevilla, Programme Consultant for South East Asia and Older Workers, Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO)
  • Ms. Grace Chan, Business Director, Hong Kong Council of Social Service

Closing remarks: Ms. Amal Abou Rafeh, Chief of the Programme on Ageing Unit, United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA)

This event will be available at no cost and a recording will be available following the live event. For more information regarding the programme and speaker biographies please visit ifa.ngo/driving-our-agenda/united-nations.

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Vienna, please visit ngoageingvie.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Geneva, please visit ageingcommitteegeneva.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-NY, please visit ngocoa-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Intergenerational Solidarity, please email the vice chair at susanneseperson@gmail.com. 

Civil Society Dialogue with WHO Director-General

Second interactive civil society dialogue with WHO Director General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

This innovative dialogue aims to find concrete proposals and solutions on working together to improve healthy ageing at global, regional, national and community levels. 

Register here: https://who.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_i3p29UnmSS2sMy7SafaZ5w

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CoNGO Notes: For more information on the NGO Committee on Social Development, please visit ngosocdev.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-NY, please visit ngocoa-ny.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Vienna, please visit ngoageingvie.org. For more information on the NGO Committee on Ageing-Geneva, please visit ageingcommitteegeneva.org.

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