In March 2022 WHO/Europe brought together 31 ministers, delegates from over 50 countries from three regions, refugee and migrant representatives, the European and African Union, United Nations agencies, as well as other international partners to a high-level meeting on health and migration in Istanbul, Turkey.
Together they agreed on five priority actions to improve the health and well-being of refugees and migrants.
- Ensure that migrants and refugees have universal health coverage.
- Implement inclusive health emergency policies.
- Promote social inclusion and reduce inequalities between people.
- Strengthen migration health governance and data gathering.
- Support new partnerships and innovative ways of working
To translate this consensus into action, Dr. Fouad M. Fouad, the IDRC Research Chair in Lebanon, will participate in the Tri-regional Dialogue on Refugee and Migrant Health at the World Health Assembly in Geneva. This panel discussion, attended by health ministers and representatives from the WHO European, African, and Eastern Mediterranean Regions, aims to:
- translate the outcomes of the High-level meeting on health and migration in March 2022 into action;
- strengthen the tri-regional collaboration on the health of refugees and migrants; and
- include refugee and migrant voices in the debate.