In the latest episode of the Health in Europe podcast, WHO Regional Director for Europe Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge discusses the formation of the European Programme of Work (EPW) 2020–2025, “United Action for Better Health in Europe”, and how it will improve health in the WHO European Region over the coming years. Dr Kluge also explains how the EPW’s development was impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and how citizens can get involved to help make the EPW a reality.
The EPW is linked to the 3 core priorities of WHO’s 13th General Programme of Work: to ensure that more people have access to universal health coverage, enjoy improved health and well-being, and are better protected from health emergencies. Supporting these 3 priorities are 4 flagship areas: behavioural and cultural insights, mental health, immunization, and digital health.
Listen to the latest episode of Health in Europe by clicking the link below.
What is the role of local communities in fostering human security and resilience?
COMECE and its partners invite you to participate in the webinar “Fostering human security and resilience in the future EU-Africa partnership – The role of local communities” on Thursday 15 October 2020 at 11h00 CEST. The event is organised as a faith-based contribution to a future fair and people-centered partnership between the EU and the African Union.
Policy-makers, Church representatives and stakeholders from the EU and different African countries will engage in a discussion on Africa that goes beyond State resilience and security. Speakers will present some of the many local initiatives undertaken in various fields and policy areas, illustrating ways in which local actors are playing a key role in building resilience and human security.
Given the relevance of EU-Africa cooperation in these areas, the webinar aims at shedding light to the importance of supporting and promoting the role of local and faith actors and communities as important contributors to these objectives.
The concept of efficiency and productivity in farming is often associated with poor animal welfare and sustainability, but that is not necessarily the case and more work must be done to change this perception, stakeholders highlighted at a recent event on animal welfare.
On the backdrop of an increased focus on animal welfare in the EU, the event, organised by animal medicines association AnimalHealthEurope, took a closer look at the future of the livestock sector as the EU forms its game-plan for delivering on the EU Green Deal ambitions.
Animal welfare is set to take centre stage in policy making priorities over the coming months, being a major focus of the EU’s flagship food policy, the Farm to Fork strategy (F2F), and a key theme of the German EU presidency.
But stakeholders were quick to emphasise that there is not one sole example of a sustainable farming system.
“I don’t think we should follow this black and white debate—smaller means greener and more sustainable,” stressed Norbert Lins, chair of the European Parliament’s agriculture committee.
“It depends on the method, it depends on the use of technologies, and all these things are more important than the question of how large or how small is the farm.”
Livestock sustainability consultant Jude Capper also warned against oversimplifying the discussion.
Drawing from her experience working on farms of all shapes and sizes, Capper said that there is often an idealism about livestock farming which doesn’t always reflect the best interests of the animals, but holds a strong influence on our approach going forward.
“We often see that there is a real or a perceived dichotomy between efficiency, productivity, and animal health, and welfare. We’ve really got to work harder to bridge that gap to understand animal behaviour, animal welfare, animal health, productivity, and see where we can improve all of these metrics concurrently,” she said.
“Efficiency has become this dirty word – on the one hand, we have this storybook image of organic, green farms, and on the other hand, we have efficiency as being bad and evil and poor welfare, but we’ve got to help people understand that this is not necessarily the case,” Capper told EURACTIV after the event.
She added that there is a “large body of research” that demonstrates that improving both productivity and efficiency can also improve sustainably both from the environmental and economic perspective.
A communication gap between citizens and farmers in the modern livestock sector is increasingly widening and the general sentiment is shifting from an overall good opinion of those who keep feeding the world toward a negative view on farmers’ role in today’s society.
Risk of pigeon-holing
Stakeholders also warned against pigeon-holing agricultural systems, especially in the context of the drive for organic production, arguing instead for a more comprehensive view of sustainability which encourages farmers to share best practices that ensure the healthiest animals.
The F2F strategy stipulates a target for 25% of EU farmland to be farmed organically by 2030.
But organic production may not always be the answer when it comes to animal health, according to Dr Martin Scholten of Wageningen University.
“What I’m missing in the Farm to Fork Strategy is that it is one-size-fits-all. Whereas what we need is to understand that Europe has different landscapes, has different societies, has different opportunities to produce food,” he said.
Likewise, quoting Germany agriculture minister Julia Klöckner, Julie Vermooten from AnimalhealthEurope emphasised that “organic farming is not the holy grail and conventional farming is not the devil,” adding that both types carry their share of problems.
“Organic farming must become more efficient, that is for sure, and conventional farming must become more sustainable,” she said, stressing that the EU should offer its support to all farming approaches, be they conventional, organic, or agroecological.
Instead, the objective must be to “secure a sustained supply of affordable and safe food to meet growing demand”.
Organic farmer and chair of the organics Europe farmers interest group, Kurt Sannen, added that, from the perspective of an organic farmer, he was not a fan of a polarised debate which pits organic agriculture against conventional.
“My farm has an organic label, but I am more than just an organic farmer. Like my other colleagues, we all have good things and bad things, and we all can become more sustainable and do more good practice on the farm”.
“It’s not because I am organic that I am the best farmer—no, it’s just a label; no less, no more,” he said.
“I really firmly believe that there is no one size fits all system, solution, or indeed even practices either now or in the future—except that really, throughout the globe, every livestock farm has to be absolutely the best, everything that they do now, and everything that they do in future,” Capper added.
“We’ve got to help people separate out a label from a farm from anything to do with actually how productive, efficient and animal health- and welfare-friendly a farm might be”.
The apparent inability of humankind to slow down the warming of the planet, prevent irreversible climate change and the resulting destruction of the natural environment is the overwhelming medium- and long-term concern of the people who were surveyed. Other long-term concerns include an increase in poverty, government corruption, community violence and unemployment.
A young person from China says everyone is affected by climate change: “Current global climate change as a result of environmental pollution is putting individuals and whole populations at increased risk”.
The UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF has continued to delivered water to conflict-affected areas of Syria during the pandemic.
4) More UN engagement
Looking to the past, six in ten respondents believe the UN has made the world a better place and 74 per cent say that the UN is “essential” if global challenges are to be effectively tackled. However, over half of all people who answered the survey still don’t know much about the UN and consider it as “remote” from their lives.
Many recommended establishing a youth council to advise senior UN officials and one respondent from Brazil suggested more engagement at a regional and local level: “The UN could act by making greater engagements with regional and local actors, investing in the future by providing means that foster the development of the autonomy of social actors.”
5) Belief in a better future
When it comes to the future, younger participants and those in many developing countries tend to be more optimistic than those who are older or living in developed countries. People in central and southern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa tend to be more optimistic than those living in Europe and North America.
“No one is powerless.” says a 17-year-old high school student from Japan.
In case you missed the speeches delivered by the Secretary-General and the head of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) earlier this morning, here’s a brief summary.
Mr. Guterres told delegates that no other global organization gives hope to so many people for a better world”, and reminding participants that the UN “is only as strong as its members’ commitment to its ideals and each other”.
He made a strong call on Member States to act together, saying “it is now time to mobilize your resources, strengthen your efforts and show unprecedented political will and leadership, to ensure the future we want, and the United Nations we need”.
The top UN official maintained that multilateralism is a necessity in building back “better and greener” for a more equal, resilient, and sustainable world, stressed that the UN must be at the centre of these efforts, and that “an upgraded UN must respond to these challenges and changes to stay relevant and effective”.
The President of ECOSOC, Munir Akram, also spoke at the opening of the event and, in his opening remarks, urged ECOSOC to focus on three practical steps: mobilize financing to meet the current “triple challenge” (recover from COVID-19, achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, and avoid the “looming climate catastrophe”); greatly expand investment in sustainable infrastructure; and apply new technologies, whilst bridging the digital divide between rich and poor.
Mr. Akram warned that the world is drifting towards an erosion of structures, including the United Nations, that have been built to preserve peace and promote prosperity, risking a “tragedy of epic proportions for all mankind”. He called on UN Member States to reverse this course.
Full speeches from the day will be available on the UN75 website.
The case, concerning Rubén, a child with Down syndrome, was brought before the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2017 by the child and his father. Rubén was sent to a special education centre by Spanish authorities, despite his parents’ objections.
It was also alleged that Rubén was ill-treated and abused by his teacher. Criminal charges were also brought against Rubén’s parents by the authorities, for their refusal to send him to a specialized school.
It does not appear that the authorities have carried out a thorough assessment … of his educational needs and the reasonable accommodations … to continue attending a mainstream school
In its first decision on the right to inclusive education, the Committee concluded that Spain failed to assess the child’s specific requirements and to take reasonable steps that could have allowed him to remain in mainstream education.
“It does not appear that the State party’s authorities have carried out a thorough assessment or an in-depth, detailed study of his educational needs and the reasonable accommodations that he would have required to be able to continue attending a mainstream school,” Markus Schefer, one of the 18 independent members of the Committee, said in a news release on Monday.
The Committee called on Spain to ensure Rubén, who is currently in a private special education centre for students with special needs, is admitted to an inclusive vocational training programme; that he is given compensation; and that his allegations of abuse are effectively investigated.
It also recommended that Spain eliminate any educational segregation of students with disabilities in both special education schools and specialized units within mainstream schools, and to ensure that parents of students with disabilities are not prosecuted for claiming their children’s right to inclusive education.
According to the news release, issued by the UN human rights office (OHCHR), Rubén was in a mainstream school in León, a city in north-western Spain. With the support of a special education assistant, he had good relations with his classmates and teachers until 2009 when he entered grade four, aged 10. The situation deteriorated and serious allegations of ill-treatment and abuse by his teacher surfaced.
The condition did not improve when Rubén entered grade five. His new class teacher did not consider that he needed a special education assistant and only after his parents complained was he allowed to have one.
However, Rubén began to exhibit difficulties in learning and with school life. A school report noted what it termed Rubén’s “disruptive behaviour”, “psychotic outbreaks” and “developmental delay associated with Down syndrome.”
In June 2011, the Provincial Directorate of Education authorized Rubén’s enrolment in a special education centre in the face of his parents’ objections, who also approached domestic judicial authorities, but no effective investigation was conducted. His parents also unsuccessfully challenged the education authority’s decision to enrol him in a special education centre.
Furthermore, the authorities brought criminal charges against the parents for their refusal to send their child to a specialized school.
The Committee is made up of 18 members who are independent human rights experts drawn from around the world, who serve in their personal capacity and not as representatives of States parties. They are not UN staff and do not receive a salary.
The Committee’s views and decisions on individual communications are an independent assessment of States’ compliance with their human rights obligations under the Convention.
BIC NEW YORK — As the United Nations marks its 75th anniversary, the Bahá’í International Community (BIC) has released a statement on the occasion. That the UN has persisted in spite of numerous challenges and has so far lasted three times the 25-year lifespan of the League of Nations—humanity’s first serious attempt at global governance—is an impressive accomplishment, says the BIC.
The statement highlights the need for systems of global cooperation to be strengthened if humanity is to address the serious challenges of our time and seize the immense opportunities of the coming years for progress.
It explores elements necessary for a movement toward enduring, universal peace, including: the acknowledgement of the oneness and interdependence of the human family; a genuine concern for all, without distinction; the ability of nations to learn from one another, and a willing acceptance of setbacks and missteps as inevitable aspects of the learning process; and, the conscious effort to ensure that material progress is connected to spiritual and social progress.
“Collaboration is possible on scales undreamt of in past ages, opening unparalleled prospects for progress,” the statement reads. “The task before the community of nations… is to ensure that the machinery of international politics and power is increasingly directed toward cooperation and unity.”
The BIC, in its statement, sees this to be an opportune moment for the international community to begin building consensus about how it can better organize itself, suggesting several initiatives and innovations that may be worthy of further consideration. For example, a world council on future affairs that could institutionalize consideration of how policies might impact generations to come and give attention to a range of issues such as preparedness for global crises, the use of emerging technologies, or the future of education or employment.
Titled “A Governance Befitting: Humanity and the Path Toward a Just Global Order,” the statement is being released to coincide with the UN General Assembly’s commemoration today of the 75th anniversary. It was sent today to the Secretary General of the UN and to the ambassadors of Member States.
Coming at a time when the global health crisis has prompted a deeper appreciation of humanity’s interdependence, this anniversary year has given rise to discussion about the role of international structures and reforms that can be made to the UN.
The statement is one of several contributions the BIC is making to these discussions. It will continue its exploration of the profound themes in the statement at an online meeting next month with UN officials and ambassadors.
(UN Photo/Loey Felipe)The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby briefs the UN Security Council in New York on August 31, 2018.
The UK government’s “rule of six,” to combat rising coronavirus cases bannig social gatherings of more than six people, comes into force on Sept. 21, but will not apply to public worship in churches.
British authorities said the law would be changed in England to reduce the maximum number of people who can gather from 30 to six, to address an upsurge in COVID-19 cases.
Scotland has different regulations.
There were 390,358 cases and 41,759 deaths during a 14-day upward trend reported ON the UK government’s novel coronavirus dashboard.
The Archbishop of Canterbury tweeted Sept. 16, “After contact with Government, we hear that there is no change to guidance on places of worship. Worship is the work of God — not a social gathering — and gives the strength to love and serve.”
On Facebook, Archbishop Justin Welby wrote, “The increase in COVID cases is very concerning. We must follow the guidance and take all the necessary measures to keep people safe.”
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said at a press conference at Downing Street, “In England, from Monday, we’re introducing the rule of six. You must not meet socially in groups of more than six, and, if you do, you’re breaking the law.”
PLACES OF WORSHIP EXEMPT
He listed some exempt places, including places of worship, in which more than six people are still permitted to gather, The Church Times said.
“Within those venues, however, there must not be individual groups larger than six, and groups must not mix socially together or form larger groups.”
Earlier, Welby had said he is “deeply concerned” about the impact of the “rule of six” on family life.
A family of five will be allowed to meet only one grandparent at a time, while families of six or more will be prohibited from meeting anyone.
Support bubbles allow adults who live by themselves and single parents – to join up with one other household.
All social gatherings of more than six – whether a book club, dinner party or picnic – are banned in England under the new law.
Support bubbles allow adults who live by themselves and single parents – to join up with one other household.
Police will have the power to break up bigger groups in parks, pubs, and private homes.
Archbishop Welby’s voice carries weight in Britain because he is the Church of England’s principal leader and the head of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
IMPACT OF RULE OF SIX
Welby was said to be concerned about the impact of the “rule of six” “the vulnerable, the needy, the poor and the elderly” in Britain, The Daily Mail reported.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph newspaper, the archbishop said: “It makes sense to look instinctively for central direction in such an acute crisis, and we’re indebted to the roles many played in doing so, especially those who organized the NHS (National Health Service) to cope with the increased demand.
“Within the Church, there are lessons to be learnt about the role and importance of central guidance and its crucial interplay with government rules that exist for the benefit of all.
“But with a vaccine still far from certain, infection rates rising and winter on the horizon, the new normal of living with COVID-19 will only be sustainable – or even endurable – if we challenge our addiction to centralization and go back to an age-old principle: only do centrally what must be done centrally.”
ROME — U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has urged the Vatican to bring its considerable moral authority to bear on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which persists in oppressing Christians and people of other faiths.
“The Holy See has a unique capacity and duty to focus the world’s attention on human rights violations, especially those perpetrated by totalitarian regimes like Beijing’s,” Pompeo wrote Friday in an essay for First Things. “In the late twentieth century, the Church’s power of moral witness helped inspire those who liberated central and eastern Europe from communism, and those who challenged autocratic and authoritarian regimes in Latin America and East Asia.”
“That same power of moral witness should be deployed today with respect to the Chinese Communist Party,” the secretary insisted.
“What the Church teaches the world about religious freedom and solidarity should now be forcefully and persistently conveyed by the Vatican in the face of the Chinese Communist Party’s relentless efforts to bend all religious communities to the will of the Party and its totalitarian program,” he added.
Secretary Pompeo’s public urging comes just as Vatican diplomats are meeting with their CCP counterparts to renegotiate a 2018 secret agreement between the Holy See and China on the naming of Catholic bishops in China.
“Two years on, it’s clear that the Sino-Vatican agreement has not shielded Catholics from the Party’s depredations, to say nothing of the Party’s horrific treatment of Christians, Tibetan Buddhists, Falun Gong devotees, and other religious believers,” Pompeo noted.
“Communist authorities continue to shutter churches, spy on and harass the faithful, and insist that the Party is the ultimate authority in religious affairs,” he wrote.
This week, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) similarly urged the Vatican to highlight religious liberty in its deliberations with China prior to renewing a 2018 deal on the naming of bishops.
“Communist China continues to persecute Chinese Catholics. USCIRF hopes any future deal between the Vatican & China is rooted in the protection of #religiousfreedom,” the Commission wrote on its Twitter page.
Both the Vatican and Beijing have signaled a desire to renew their secret 2018 agreement, which conferred on the Chinese Communist Party an unspecified amount of authority in the selection of Catholic bishops in China.
In January 2020, the bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) released its annual report on human rights conditions in China, which revealed an overall deterioration of religious liberty since the signing of the Sino-Vatican accord.
“In September 2018, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs signed an agreement with the Holy See, paving the way for the unification of state-sanctioned and underground Catholic communities,” the report stated. “Subsequently, local Chinese authorities subjected Catholic believers in China to increased persecution by demolishing churches, removing crosses, and continuing to detain underground clergy.”
“The Party-led Catholic national religious organizations also published a plan to ‘sinicize’ Catholicism in China,” the report continued, referring to the stated aim of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) of obliging all religions to bring their teachings and practices into line with the party.
President Xi Jinping has doubled down on the “sinicization” of religion, the report’s executive summary noted. “Scholars and international rights groups have described religious persecution in China over the last year to be of an intensity not seen since the Cultural Revolution,” it added.
China has intensified its persecution of the underground Catholic church ever since the Holy See softened its position on the state-controlled Catholic Patriotic Association, allowing believers to join despite its assertion of total independence from Rome.
In his essay Friday, Mr. Pompeo wrote that history teaches “that totalitarian regimes can only survive in darkness and silence, their crimes and brutality unnoticed and unremarked.”
“If the Chinese Communist Party manages to bring the Catholic Church and other religious communities to heel, regimes that disdain human rights will be emboldened, and the cost of resisting tyranny will rise for all brave religious believers who honor God above the autocrat of the day,” he warned.
“I pray that, in dealing with the Chinese Communist Party, the Holy See and all who believe in the divine spark enlightening every human life will heed Jesus’s words in the Gospel of John, ‘The truth will set you free,’” he concluded.
Pope Francis on Saturday decried the injustice of what he called “pharmaceutical marginality”, saying those who live in poverty are poor even in medicines, treatment and health.
He made the remark to some 300 representatives of the Italy-based Fondazione Banco Farmaceutico (Medicine Bank Foundation), which collects medicines from donors and companies to deliver them to over 1,800 charities that take care of people in difficulty.
Speaking to the Foundation on its 20th anniversary this year, the Pope said sometimes people “run the risk of not being able to get treatment for lack of money, or because some people in the world do not have access to certain medicines”. “There is also a “pharmaceutical marginality”, which, he said, “creates a further gap between nations and peoples”.
“On the ethical level, if there is the possibility of curing a disease with a medicine, it should be available to everyone, otherwise it creates an injustice.”
The Holy Father lamented that too many people and children are still dying in the world because they cannot have the medications available in other regions. Warning against the danger of globalization of indifference, he proposed the globalization of treatment, which is the “possibility of access to those medications that could save so many lives for all populations”.
Involving all actors
This, the Pope said, requires a “common effort, a convergence that involves everyone”. Scientific research can help find new solutions to old and new problems, including new paths of healing and treatment. Pharmaceutical companies can help contribute to a more equitable distribution of medicines.
Pharmacists, he said, can be particularly attentive to those most in need and work for the integral good of those who approach them. Through their legislative and financial choices, those in authority are called to build a more just world in which the poor are not abandoned, or worst still, discarded.
Pandemic and pharmaceutical poverty
Pope Francis drew attention to the current pandemic, which, he said, has claimed nearly a million lives and is also turning into a serious economic crisis. This is increasing the number of poor people and families who don’t know how to go ahead.
“While charitable assistance is being provided,” the Pope said, “it is also a matter of fighting this pharmaceutical poverty, in particular with a wide spread of new vaccines in the world.” He reiterated that “it would be sad if in providing the vaccine, priority is given to the richest, or if this vaccine became the property of this or that country, and not for everyone”.
Collection Day
Through its Medicine Collection Day over the past 20 years, the Banco Farmaceutico Foundation has collected over 5.6 million medicines worth some €34 million. Over 4,900 pharmacies and more than 22,000 volunteers were involved in this year’s Medicine Collection Day in February. More than 473,000 needy people benefitted from the medicines collected.
