Prince of Asturias Awards 1981–2014. Speeches

P rince of A sturias A wards 1981-2014. S peeches 5 Margaret Chan, on behalf of the World Health Organization — Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation 2009 Margaret Chan has been Director- General of who since 2007. — Excerpt from the speech given on the occasion of receiving the Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation on 23/10/2009. Health is the very essence of our common humanity. It is part of our human nature to value and desire good health. And it is in the best interests of all nations to build a common understanding of threats to health and to promote good will in seeking and sharing solutions. When who was founded 61 years ago, a central aim was to provide a mechanism through which all countries could work together in the pursuit of better health. A commitment to the principles of equity and social justice was present from the start. This is the heart of the moral and ethical imperative to work together for health, to make life better for the people worst off. No one should be denied access to life-saving medical care for unfair reasons, including those with economic or social causes. The need for international cooperation in health has become even more important under the unique conditions of the 21st century. At a time of radically increased interdependence among nations, health problems everywhere are being shaped by the same powerful forces, creating universal threats. The globalization of unhealthy lifestyles has fuelled an alarming worldwide rise of chronic diseases, like heart disease, cancer, and diabetes; diseases now found in rich and poor countries alike. Changes in the way humanity inhabits the planet have spurred the emergence of new diseases and accelerated their international spread. The climate is changing, with profoundly negative consequences for health. Killer diseases, like HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, are not yet under control. Advances in medicine have raced ahead, but far too many people have been left behind. Allow me to use, as an illustration, the growing H1N1 pandemic. The first influenza pandemic of the 21st century is spreading in a world where differences in income levels, in health status, in access to care, and in resources for health are greater than at any time in recent history. When this same virus reaches all countries, the great differences that exist in each country in the field of healthcare will become evident. The current pandemic is the first important test of the revised and reformulated IHRS (international health regulations), which have served the international community, providing an orderly and regulated way of acting collectively and we are gathering their fruits.