Public Health in a Globalized World: Breaking down Political, Social and Economic Barriers

ABRASCO: "The World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA) – in a 2004 policy resolution - defined “public health as an art and a science; and also a movement dedicated to the equitable improvement of health and well-being (of communities with their full participation). First and foremost, public health leaders must be catalysts for the public health movement. Individually and collectively around the world, public health leaders must maintain and strengthen their roles and capacities as advocates for public health. The Federation recognizes as “key challenges having a global dimension: the promotion of human rights; the reduction of the burden of disease; the guarantee of appropriate nutrition; the education on all aspects of health promotion; the protection of the environment; and the achievement of worldwide access to essential drugs at reasonable cost” (1).

Although technical and scientific progress provides broad-ranging preventative, and curative resources, and economic and social progress in many developed countries has extended life expectancy and enhanced the quality of life of large segments of the population, yet poverty, hunger, preventable diseases and violence continue to threaten the health and livelihoods of over three quarters of the population of the planet. (2)


There is growing consensus that “to tackle the major global health challenges effectively, the practice of public health will need to change. It is not sufficient to focus only on urgent health priorities, for example, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria in sub-Saharan Africa, or just the Millennium Development Goals. Programs and policies are required that respond to poverty—the basic cause of much of the global burden of disease—prevent the emerging epidemics of non-communicable disease, and address global environmental change, natural, and man-made disasters, and provide for sustainable health development. The justification for action is that health is both an end in itself—a human right—as well as a prerequisite for human development.” (3)

Today’s smaller and faster world -- brought about by advancements in communications and information technology -- has yet to address the daunting task of breaking down the barriers that stand in the way of promoting health and delivering appropriate care to hundreds of millions of human beings. Ethical principles need to be revisited and reinforced. Public health leaders have an enormous challenge to draw attention to these social, economic and political barriers and focus their talents and energy in engaging political and social forces as part of a global and united commitment to actively pulling down these barriers.

The World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA) and the Brazilian Association of Collective Health (ABRASCO) invite the public health leadership from all parts of the world to come to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and join the 11th World Congress on Public Health, and the 8th Brazilian Congress on Collective Health in addressing the Congress theme: “Public Health in a Globalized World: Breaking down Political, Social and Economic Barriers”.

1 WFPHA, 2004. Resolution on global public health leadership.
2 ABRASCO, 2003. Declaration on International Public Health.
3 Beaglehole R et al., 2004. Public health in the new era: improving health through collective action. Lancet 363:2084-2086."