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Governance

There is a new world of challenges for global health governance, with shifting donor priorities, evolving health needs in many low- and middle-income nations, and a development assistance budget that has not increased much since 2010. This section offers an inside look at the ways in which global health governance is adapting to these changes, with a focus on the institutions, rules, and processes that govern the health of people across the world.

Governance

10%

Annual growth in global health aid, 2000-2010

Annual growth in global health aid, 2000-2010 Annual growth in global health aid, 2000-2010

1.3%

Annual growth in global health aid, 2011-2018

Annual growth in global health aid, 2011-2018 Annual growth in global health aid, 2011-2018

1851

First International Sanitary Conference convenes

First International Sanitary Conference convenes First International Sanitary Conference convenes

40

Years since WHO certified smallpox eradication

Years since WHO certified smallpox eradication Years since WHO certified smallpox eradication

14.6 M

Million people on PEPFAR-funded HIV/AIDS treatment

Million people on PEPFAR-funded HIV/AIDS treatment Million people on PEPFAR-funded HIV/AIDS treatment

1948

World Health Organization founded

World Health Organization founded World Health Organization founded

2%

Share of health aid for noncommunicable diseases

Share of health aid for noncommunicable diseases Share of health aid for noncommunicable diseases

Featured

Governance
Where policy meets health: European Union leaders take part in the first face-to-face EU summit since the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak began, in Brussels, Belgium, on July 17, 2020. The photo shows a large round table from above with various leaders seated far apart from one another. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir

A New Era for Health Policy and Systems Research
by Mohammed AlKhaldi, Hamza Meghari, Sara Ahmed - July 20, 2020

It is now time to boost and embed health policy and systems research to handle crucial questions related to COVID-19

Governance
Ignoring the science on social distancing, not congregating indoors, and wearing masks, young people listen to U.S. President Donald J. Trump at the Dream City Church in Phoenix on June 23, 2020. The photo shows a huge crowd of yound people, very few wearing masks, packed into theater-like seats. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

Why Global Health is Missing its Moment

by Jessica Pickett, Alanna Shaikh

The field has always been political, but our refusal to engage as such has sidelined experts just as they're most needed

Governance
The headquarters of the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, May 18, 2020. The photo shows the WHO HQ. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

Why the WHO?

by Chelsea Clinton, Eric Friedman, Lawrence O. Gostin, Devi Sridhar

The World Health Organization is essential to convening scientific experts and the world’s best thinking on COVID-19

Latest

Share of COVID-19 tests that are positive globally. The image is a graph. CC-BY/Our World in Data
Governance

COVID-19 This Week: The Tide Is Beginning to Turn, But is Still Very High

by Tom Frieden

The better we understand coronavirus, our risk, and our response with real-time intelligence, the better we can fight it

A boy stand in front of a graffiti promoting the fight against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Mathare slums of Nairobi, Kenya, on May 22, 2020. This is a powerful photo of a young boy walking in front of a sinister depiction of the virus with a face that appears to be sneeringly looking at the boy. REUTERS/Baz Ratner
Governance

The Unpaid Debt of Underinvestment in Public Health

by Sonak D. Pastakia, James Akiruga Amisi, Tina Tran, David Mazza

Limited progress on the social determinants of health has left populations in Kenya and elsewhere vulnerable to COVID-19

Chairs are pictured on top of tables in a classroom at Watlington Primary School during the last day of school, amid the coronavirus outbreak in Watlington, Britain, on July 17, 2020. The photo shows a number of tables with chairs stacked upon them. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh
Governance

COVID-19 This Week: On the Brink

by Tom Frieden

The United States is a global outlier—a long way from vaccines or containment, even as we consider reopening schools