PHA-Exchange> STATEMENT BY THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION On the World Trade Organization 5th Ministerial Conference Cancún, Mexico

[Claudio]

>  > *
>  > *Statement WHO/11
>  > 10 September 2003
>  >
>  >
>  > STATEMENT BY THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION
>  >
>  > The recent WTO decision on access to affordable medicines is an
>  > encouraging move by WTO Members to implement the TRIPS^Agreement to the
benefit of public health.
>  >
>  > One of our greatest challenges today is to make antiretrovirals
>  > available to the more than six million people in need of immediate
>  > treatment for HIV/AIDS in developing countries. At the same time in
>  > many countries, we must tackle other diseases such as malaria, whose
>  > victims are mostly children, and tuberculosis. A key element in this
>  > work is also to boost health systems and delivery mechanisms for
>  > medicines.
>  >
>  > WHO will work with Member States, WTO and other partners on the
>  > implementation of the new agreement and to monitor progress.
>  >
>  > In addition to TRIPS, the WTO agreements that have implications for
>  > public health are: Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS), Trade in
>  > Services (GATS) and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). The health
>  > issues most relevant to these include: food safety, cross-border
>  > spread of infectious diseases and SPS; health services and GATS;
>  > health norms and standards and TBT.
>  >
>  > We believe an overall goal is to help countries achieve greater
>  > coherence between trade and health policy so that trade rules maximize
>  > health benefits and minimize the risks, especially for poor and
>  > vulnerable populations.
>  >
>  > The global health situation has improved during the last 50 years. But
>  > the successes are sometimes reversed. WHO hopes that the Cancún
>  > meeting will be a significant step towards a brighter future with
>  > greater health equity.
>  >
_bagozzid at who.int
>  > _