61st World Health Assembly. Geneva, Switzerland.
19-24 May, 2008.
The inauguration ceremony was delivered by Mr Kamalesh Sharma, new Commonwealth Secretary-General.
The election of chair for this meeting fell on Hon Mr John Maginley, Minister of Health of Antigua and Barbuda.
Delegations from Caribbean Countries were headed by Ministers of Health from Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Lucia and Trinidad & Tobago.
Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, Desmond Tutu delivered an inspiring key note speech reminding the audience about the relevance of the values and principles of Primary Health Care as they are based on the concept of one humanity of equals
"All brothers and sisters without distinction, one family" - expressed.
He also reiterated the definition of health as stated in the Alma Ata declaration and expressed his deep concern about the use of resources for war and death that were being diverted from better and urgent use to satisfy basic needs.
Tutu strongly and enthusiastically spoke about the tremendously beneficial power of information technologies expressed through E-health to facilitate universal access to health ended up and alerting all - that war on terrorism is never going to succeed unless we address the causes that make most of our human family members desperate to survive in unacceptable conditions.
Finally, he reminded to the Ministers of Health in the audience that Alma Ata and Primary Health Care were defined to address the increasing inequities in health and this is another opportunity to address this pending debt and move us closer to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG)
Speeches from Americas delegation at the WHA: [only spanish and portuguese version]
Inauguración / Clausura. Discursos del Ministro de Salud de Cuba, José Ramón Balaguer, en la reunión de Ministros
de Salud del Movimiento de Países No Alineados (NOAL), en el marco de la 61ª Sesión de la Asamblea
Mundial de la Salud.
Discurso do Ministro de Estado da Saúde do Brasil, Dr. José Gomes Temporão na 61a. sessão da
Assembléia Mundial da Saúde.
Discurso del Ministro de Salud de Honduras en sesion plenaria de la Asamblea
Mundial de la Salud, en representación de la subregion Centroamericana, Panamá y República Dominicana.
Discurso del Ministro de Salud de Cuba, José Ramón Balaguer, en sesion plenaria de la Asamblea
Mundial de la Salud.
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