Health ministers from Commonwealth countries will meet in Geneva, Switzerland on 17 May 2009 to discuss ‘Health and Climate Change’
1 May 2009
Tomorrow will be too late to regain the progress we have lost today’ – Commonwealth Secretary-General
Health ministers from Commonwealth countries will meet in
The meeting, which takes place annually on eve of the World Health Assembly, is for Commonwealth health ministers, senior officials and delegates from non-governmental organisations.
Developing countries and small island states in the Commonwealth are already experiencing some of the negative impacts of climate change, but lack the capacity to plan and mitigate for its predicted effects on public health. The meeting aims to provide a platform for discussion on the issue and an opportunity for ministers to share experiences and expertise.
According to the United Nations, an estimated 200,000 deaths each year in the world’s low income countries can be linked to the impact of climate change on health, through crop failure and malnutrition, diarrhoeal disease, malaria and flooding.
Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma said: “Climate change could reverse progress made towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals in human development. Tomorrow will be too late to regain the progress we have lost today.”
The meeting’s keynote speaker is Professor Sir Andrew Haines, Director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Sir Andrew is an expert in epidemiology and the study of environmental influences on health, including the potential effects of global environmental change.
Source: The Commonwealth Secretariat
