The call comes at a time when climate change, drought and other extreme weather events are fueling food insecurity, conflict and displacement, causing deeper and increasingly complex health emergencies, making health care increasingly under fire.
Every humanitarian crisis is a health crisis.the WHO said, and every dollar invested in its life-saving work generates a return on investment of at least $35.
Small price to pay
Speaking from the UN agency's headquarters in Geneva, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged donors and governments to increase support.
“There are only two ways to reduce human suffering caused by health crises: increase funding or reduce need. Neither is happening right now,” he said, warning against inaction.
UN Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths fully supported the call, saying it represented “a very small price to pay to protect the health of the most vulnerable and prevent the global health crisis from deepening.”
For example, he said nine months of war in Sudan have strained the country's health system far beyond its capacity, affecting people who depend on daily care as well as civilians injured in the fighting.
Additionally, poor disease surveillance and low vaccination coverage against preventable diseases have contributed to recurrent measles outbreaks.
Similar situations have occurred in Haiti, Somalia, Yemen and many other countries, where infectious diseases such as cholera are being driven by and exacerbating a broader humanitarian crisis. One billion people around the world are now at risk of contracting this deadly waterborne disease.
Healthcare in the spotlight
Meanwhile, “global health is threatened like never before,” Griffiths said. Last year, 1,300 attacks on healthcare were reported in 19 countries, resulting in more than 700 deaths and 1,100 injuries among healthcare workers and patients.
Since the start of the current hostilities between Hamas and Israel, there have been more than 624 attacks on healthcare in the occupied Palestinian territories, he said, resulting in the deaths of 619 healthcare workers and patients, and another 826 injured.
Dr. Mike Ryan, head of WHO's Health Emergencies Programme, echoed this concern.
A 'weapon' of war
“We are witnessing an era in which attacking health care has become a tactic of war, not previously referred to euphemistically as collateral damage or accidental damage, but fundamentally a weapon used to increase terror and deny people the health service they need. needs,” he said.
Next month will mark two years since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, where health care “is not just a service,” according to the top UN humanitarian official in the country, Denise Brown.
“The availability of health care keeps a community together,” he said from Geneva. “So, I would say the loss of health care is also the beginning of the loss of a sense of community.”
Support is essential
Citing the WHO, he said there have been more than 1,400 attacks on health infrastructure in Ukraine since the war began, and 14 have occurred since December 29 last year.
Ms Brown praised the dedicated health professionals in Ukraine who continue to need immediate support from WHO and other institutions, but expressed concern about a possible decrease in humanitarian funding this year.
Earlier on Monday, the UN launched a $4.2 billion humanitarian appeal for the country.
“The war is not over, the suffering continues and the support of Member States remains absolutely essential for the work we do, including healthcare,” he said.
