Towards a healthier future: our statement for the Pact for the Future
22/2/2024
- News
During the virtual consultations for the Pact for the Future in February 2024, Wemos presented a statement calling on member states of the United Nations (UN) to address injustices in the global financial architecture and to strengthen public health systems.
The upcoming Summit of the Future, set to take place in September 2024, is an important opportunity for global sustainability. The summit aims to renew countries’ commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to outline specific, actionable measures in a newly proposed document, the Pact for the Future. Wemos and partners are actively involved in this effort, advocating for concrete actions towards tax and debt justice and health equity.
Summit of the Future: commitments to get back on track with the SDGs
On 22-23 September 2024, the Summit of the Future will take place at the UN headquarters in New York. The Summit provides a high-level platform for countries to reaffirm their commitments to the SDGs, which are seriously off track – including SDG 3 on health. Moreover, the Summit will add new issues to the agenda of international cooperation, such as the risks of digital technologies, aiming to safeguard the future for present and coming generations.
The Pact for the Future (‘the Pact’), is the envisaged outcome document of the Summit of the Future. Its key objective is to establish concrete, actionable commitments that will allow countries to get back on track in achieving the SDGs, as well as address new challenges in sustainable development.
The intergovernmental process of drafting the text of the Pact for the Future is guided by two co-facilitators: Germany and Namibia. They released the zero draft of the Pact in January 2024, which is currently under analysis and negotiations by UN member states. Stakeholders, including civil society organizations, have been invited to provide inputs to the Pact through different channels (read morehere).
Our statement on the zero draft of the Pact for the Future
Wemos, together with some of our Make Way partners, is engaged in the process towards the Summit of the Future, as we see it as an opportunity for increased international cooperation and promotion of universal human rights.
On February 21, we presented a statement during the virtual consultation the zero draft of the Pact. There, we called on UN member states to draw attention to the right to health and the structural causes that hamper health equity. In particular, we emphasized the need for mechanisms to address global tax injustices and strengthen public health systems. Read our full statement here:
Towards a healthier future: a call for strengthening public health systems
Wemos statement for the zero draft of the Pact for the Future – virtual consultations on 21 February 2024
To promote and safeguard the health and well-being of all generations in the near and far future, countries need to strengthen public health systems. Health equity requires sufficient public – not private – funding for public purposes.
In that vein, and building on last year’s health-related high-level political declarations, we urge member states on the necessary next steps in reforming the international financial architecture, including:
all countries cooperating, without any reservations, towards a UN Framework Convention on Tax;
putting a sovereign debt workout mechanism and framework on the UN agenda;
refraining from ‘private finance first’ approaches in financing for development until an independent review shows the impact on relevant development outcomes, such as health equity, when it concerns the health sector;
urgently implementing measures to improve development assistance, including the implementation of the Lusaka Agenda for Global Health Initiatives, while moving towards more sustainable ways of funding global public goods and development goals – guided by fair share financing principles and governed by all countries on equal footing.
The Pact for the Future should include a wholehearted commitment to such systemic changes. Although it takes time, well-grounded, decisive and inclusive action toward stronger public health systems today will secure a healthier future.
The upcoming key moment in the process of the Summit of the Future will be the UN Civil Society Conference in Nairobi, Kenya, on 09-10 May 2024. We are looking forward to connecting and debating with other civil society organizations, member states and other stakeholders attending the conference.
