Angola’s Vice President Manuel Vicente has announced a national plan to address the country’s lack of medical staff. The country currently has just two doctors for every 10 000 people.
Angola’s Vice President Manuel Vicente has announced a national plan to address the country’s lack of medical staff.
The country currently has just two doctors for every 10 000 people.
The plan, which will run between 2013 and 2020, sets out how the gap on qualified human resources in the health sector will be filled.
Officiating yesterday (November 19) at the opening ceremony of the 62nd session of the World Health Organisation (WHO) regional committee for Africa, being held in Luanda, Angola until Friday (November 23), Vicente said: “The development of any inclusive, democratic, progressive welfare society requires an efficient health system and Angolan authorities will always place importance on public healthcare in national development policies.
“We need to persistently improve quality and ensure equity in universal access to integrated health services by all citizens, without exception, throughout their life cycle.”
The Vice President emphasised the expansion of peripheral health networks and specialised services, adding that the national plan will look at making health systems more solid and also focus on enabling people to take preventive measures to avert the onset or worsening of illness and to adopt healthier lifestyles.
“It should also focus on prevention, diagnosis, treatment and in a holistic manner to meet the people´s expectations and preferences,” he said.
Vicente told over 350 delegates, including WHO regional director for Africa Dr Luis Gomes Sambo and representatives of the African Union Commission, that Angola is going to allocate financial resources to provide primary health care at the municipal level.
The Vice President added that collaboration between different sectors including education, energy, sanitation, food security and others is key to reducing maternal and child mortality, and to prevent and control communicable and non-communicable diseases and disease outbreaks.
“There is currently ongoing collaboration among various sectors and development partners in Angola, which is contributing to eradicating polio in the country. In recognition of the importance of an effective response to public health emergencies, the Angolan government has made a contribution to the African Public Health Emergency Fund,” Vicente said.
Speaking on behalf of WHO Director General Dr Margaret Chan, Dr Sambo said countries in Africa have achieved progress in health over the last few decades and this trend would continue with a focus on primary health care.
“The primary health care approach has been a true public health revolution, allowing greater community participation, training and allocation of human resources and the improving of the access to health technologies, as well as essential drugs and vaccines,” Dr Sambo said.
He said economic growth in Africa should provide new opportunities for successful health reforms. He also emphasised the importance of accounting for the opinions and expectations of communities and grassroots organisations in decision-making as well as strengthening inter-sectoral dialogue through the leadership of health ministers.
The Regional Director highlighted progress on making vaccines available to protect around 500 million people exposed to meningitis epidemics in the Sahel and providing access to antiretroviral drugs for 6.1 million people living with HIV and AIDS.
He proposed the creation of an African Medicines Agency to strengthen the pharmaceutical industry in Africa. He said, in spite of this, HIV, AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, alongside recurrent epidemics and maternal and child mortality, continue to public health and development concerns.
Dr Sambo expressed his hope that the meeting will provide concrete recommendations and action plans, which will contribute to improve people’s health in the African region.
Among the issues on the agenda of the regional meeting are HIV prevention and treatment, health promotion, health and human rights, WHO 12th General Programme of Work (the plan of work of WHO for the next two years), WHO’s proposed Programme Budget for the 2014 – 2015 biennium, a road map for scaling up the health workforce in the region for improved health services delivery, the implementation of the International Health Regulations in the African Region, the strengthening of national health information systems, and the optimisation of existing global health initiatives to strengthen national health systems in the WHO’s African Region.
A panel discussion on traditional medicine and side events on new vaccines, HIV, AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and partnerships for health are expected to take place during the event.
The WHO African Region comprises 46 countries and the Regional Committee is one of the Organisation’s governing bodies. When it meets, the Regional Committee reviews WHO’s work in the region and give directions on actions to improve the health situation in member states.
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