PHM-Exch> [PHM News] Lancet--Univ. of Oslo Glob Governance for Hlth Report

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: David Legge <D.Legge at latrobe.edu.au>



*From:* Amit Sengupta [mailto:asengupta at phmovement.org]

 'The Lancet--University of Oslo Commission on Global Governance for

Health Report' is now available.



The full report is available here:
http://download.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140673613624071.pdf




The case studies submitted by PHM are also featured on the front page of
the PHM website  www.phmovement.org


PHM's contribution has been acknowledged as follows:



"We off er a special thanks to the People's Health Movement, which
contributed with six background papers via an editorial group consisting of
Bridget Lloyd, David Sanders, Amit Sengupta, and Hani Serag. The authors of
these background papers were Susana Barria, Alexis Benos, Anne-Emanuelle
Birn, Chiara Bodini, Eugene Cairncross, Sharon Friel, Sophia Kisting, Elias
Kondilis, David Legge, Mariette Lieff erink, Baijayanta Mukhopadhyay, Lexi
Bambas Nolen, Jagjit Plahe, Farah M Shroff , Angelo Stefanini, Anne-Marie
Thow, Pol De Vos, David van Wyk, and Aed Yaghi".



Specific references in the report to our contributions are as follows:



*On Fiscal Policies in Europe..*



"Faced with a national financial crisis that created uncertainty about the
country's ability to repay its debts, Greece accepted the bailout packages
from the IMF, European Central Bank, and European Commission, including
austerity measures that have had disastrous effects on the health and
wellbeing of Greek citizens. Major cutbacks in government spending in the
social sectors (health, welfare, and education) caused hundreds of
thousands of public sector workers to lose their jobs or see their salaries
frozen or reduced.69 Since young people were hit especially hard, they have
been named the crisis generation: in 2012, unemployment for people aged
15-24 years was 55·2% in Greece compared with an OECD average of 16·2%.70
The country reports increased numbers of homeless people, rising crime
rates, growing food insecurity, and more family break-ups".



"Contemporary events in many European countries mirror what has been
happening in much of the developing world since the early 1980s:
international financial institutions conditioned loans on
structural adjustment programmes that included not only budget cuts to
reduce fiscal deficits, but also a broader range of measures to balance
fiscal and trade deficits, deregulate the economy, and privatise state
enterprises. These programmes involved implementation of the primary tenets
of neoliberalism, including promotion of free markets, privatisation of
public assets and programmes (including health care), so-called small
government, and economic deregulation".



"Civil society organisations and movements in Europe and elsewhere have
started to speak out against the adverse effects of austerity policies on
health equity".



*On Food Sovereignty....*



"..nutritional status is not determined solely by the availability of food,
but also by political factors such as democracy and political empowerment.
The politics that generate and distribute political power and resources
at local, national, and global levels shape how people live, what they eat,
and, ultimately, their health. The global double burden of overnutrition
and undernutrition is thus one of serious inequity".



*On Extractive Industries..*



"The relation between under-regulated activities of transnational
corporations on the one hand, and health on the other, is not confined to
the handling of toxins. Extractive industries operating in oil, gas, and
mining have long been recognised as some of the most damaging to
environment, health, and livelihoods. For example, mining causes high
occupational mortality".



"International laws and norms have an important, though incomplete, role in
regulating the conduct of transnational corporations. Although communities
in host countries are often poorly protected against the operations
of transnational corporations, foreign direct investment is protected by
negotiated treaties between states and firms, ensuring protection of the
investor"



*On Trade and Health...*



"Trade and investment agreements are still negotiated between governments
behind closed doors. Similarly, adjudication of investment disputes between
states and corporations is shrouded in secrecy, even when major questions
of public interest (such as tobacco control legislation or drugs patents)
are at stake".



*The complete case studies are available here:*



https://www.med.uio.no/helsam/english/research/global-governance-health/background-papers/extrac-indus.pdf


https://www.med.uio.no/helsam/english/research/global-governance-health/background-papers/fiscal-policies-eu.pdf

https://www.med.uio.no/helsam/english/research/global-governance-health/background-papers/food-sovereignty.pdf

https://www.med.uio.no/helsam/english/research/global-governance-health/background-papers/who-trade.pdf

https://www.med.uio.no/helsam/english/research/global-governance-health/background-papers/geneva-consultations.pdf
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