On the occasion of World Health Day, April 7, 2021, WHO (World Health Organization) invited everyone to participate in a new campaign for a fairer and healthier world. In general, here are two main reasons for this campaign.
Our world is unequal.
As COVID-19 showed, some people are healthier and have better access to health services than others solely because of the conditions in which they are born, grow, live, work and age.
Around the world, some groups struggle to make ends meet on meager daily incomes, have poorer housing conditions and educational attainment, have fewer employment opportunities, suffer greater gender inequality, and have little or no access to safe environments, clean water and air, food security, and health services. This results in unnecessary suffering, preventable disease and premature death. According to the WHO, our societies and economies also suffer.
This is not only unfair: it is preventable. That is why WHO has called on leaders to ensure that everyone has living and working conditions conducive to good health. At the same time, WHO urged leaders to monitor changes in health inequities and to ensure that all people have access to good quality health services when and where they need them.
COVID-19 has hit all countries hard, but it has had a particular impact on communities that were already vulnerable, are more susceptible to disease, have less access to quality health services, and are likely to be adversely affected by the response to the pandemic.
According to Dr. Joseph Bigirimana, Legal Representative of the non-profit organization IPROSARUDE (Initiative for the Promotion of Rural Health and Development), the WHO’s reminder on World Health Day 2021 is crucial.
He then recalled that the objective of the creation of IPROSARUDE fits well with the theme of this day: saving human lives by bringing good quality and affordable health services to rural communities.
By Allickan Niragira
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