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New DAC and WHO guidelines
German-African relations: development policy too dominant?
Website on German arms exports
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8-9/2003
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[ New DAC and WHO guidelines ]
Poverty and health: multisectoral approach called for
How can development cooperation in the health sector be aligned in such a way that it has a poverty-oriented impact? An answer to this question is given by guidelines which the OECD's Development Assistance Committee (DAC) and the World Health Organisation have developed together. The study points to two essential aspects: On the one hand, more money is needed to secure basic care in the health sector. For instance, average spending on healthcare in the least-developed countries must be increased from a current US$ 11 per head per year to at least US$ 60. On the other hand, the sector must not be seen in isolation. Education and food security, water and energy supply have a decisive influence on health. Measures which contribute to the poor being better protected against air pollution and accidents, as well as conflicts and natural disasters, improve the situation.
Besides this multisectoral approach, the WHO and OECD argue expressly for cooperation with the private sector and NGOs. At the presentation of the guidelines end of May in Berlin, the head of the KfW department for health, Wolfgang Bichmann, spoke out for a pragmatic approach, saying: "In the final analysis, where the money comes from is not crucial. What counts is that it has an effect."
Silvia Richter
DAC Guidelines and Reference Series: Poverty and Health. Paris, OECD, WHO 2003, 92 pp., Euro 21.00, ISBN 92-64-10018-0
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