Newsletter 01/2025: WHS Regional Meeting, WHS 2025 Motto, Spotlight Global Health
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Dear World Health Summit Community,
The year 2025 begins with a clear call to action: "Taking Responsibility for Health in a Fragmenting World". This is the motto of the World Health Summit 2025. It underscores the urgent need to strengthen global health cooperation amid growing geopolitical and economic divisions. Recent developments, such as the United States' intention to withdraw from the World Health Organization and WHO’s US$1.5 billion Health Emergency Appeal, highlight both the challenges and the necessity of collective action. Positive approaches to bridging cracks within and between our societies are needed. The world is literally in a state of inflammation. We must ensure that this inflammation helps us overcome the imminent challenges and 'diseases of the globe' rather than leading to exacerbation and chronic illness.
Fostering multinational and global cooperation of nations and increasing support and trust for their multilateral institutions is crucial to ensuring positive global health outcomes in the year ahead and far beyond. But the responsibility is not only with the policy makers and national leaders – every sector of society from academia to the private sector and civil society must contribute.
The Word Health Summit tries to bring these sectors together in their collaboration for better health. Key priorities for 2025 include climate and health, pandemic preparedness, and sustainable health systems—challenges that demand innovative solutions and strong international cooperation. The next outstanding event will be the WHS Regional Meeting in New Delhi, India, from April 25-27, 2025. With a focus on "Scaling Access to Ensure Health Equity," the meeting will stimulate the discussion of digital and AI futures, health diplomacy, healthcare workforce challenges, and innovation for health equity.
Let’s take the responsibility and contribute to healing fragmentation through collaboration, innovation, and a shared commitment to health equity.
Stay safe, stay healthy!
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Axel R. Pries President World Health Summit
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WHS Regional Meeting in New Delhi: Register Now
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The theme of this year's WHS Regional Meeting, 'Scaling Access to Ensure Health Equity,' is designed to foster scientific and political discourse on how to scale quality health care, usually perceived as a privilege, to ensure health equity and uplift societal well-being.
Across three days, leaders from India, across Asia, and around the world from various sectors, disciplines, and cultures will exchange knowledge, spark new partnerships, inspire fresh research avenues and explore policies aimed at achieving impactful improvements in health outcomes. The WHS Regional Meeting 2025 is hosted by NIMS University and co-hosted by Manipal Academy of Higher Education, and Ashoka University.
Register Here
Find more Information on the Program, Speakers, Venue, and Participation
See Press Info
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Opinion piece by WHS Council Co-Chair Ilona Kickbusch Founding Director, Global Health Center, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies
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The Global Health Agenda is Moving from Charity to Investment
The last two G20 meetings under the presidency of India and Brazil drew attention to the enormous catch-up potential of emerging markets, including Africa. Brazil spends around ten percent of its gross domestic product on healthcare. As part of the government program for growth acceleration (PAC), around 6 billion USD are to be made available for the healthcare system by 2026 alone. The digital health market in India is expected to achieve annual revenue growth of 12.96% (2024-2029). With the Digital India program, the Indian government is pursuing a strategy that broadens access to healthcare services while expanding India's digital economy. The challenge is to ensure equity and access while enormous profits are generated in a global health market presently worth 10 trillion USD. This global market is increasingly influenced by geopolitical dimensions - healthcare supply chains are determined by strategies such as "ally and friendshoring" as well as increased competitive pressure with geopolitical overtones. At the 2024 China-Africa Cooperation Forum Summit, Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to promote the African pharmaceutical sector, including access to active ingredients, through joint investments. The Africa Centers For Disease Control recently pointed out that the African market for medicines and vaccines amounts to around USD 50 billion annually. So, who will succeed in these "new" healthcare markets? And will international partnerships ensure a system that is open and cooperative and is geared towards social goals or will increased privatization drive people into poverty because of health care bills?
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Charité Researchers Advance Treatment for Genetic Muscle Loss
Charité researchers have unveiled a promising new therapy for limb-girdle muscular dystrophy (LGMD), a genetic disorder that causes muscle degeneration. Using advanced gene-editing techniques, they aim to fix the genetic mutations behind the disease. Early results show high success rates and few side effects, bringing new hope for effective treatments.
Source: Nature Communications
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WHS Academic Alliance News
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WHS Academic Alliance Member TUMS in Iran Launches First Regional Center of Excellence for Global Health
Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS) has inaugurated the Center of Excellence for Global Health (CEGH), the first of its kind in the MENA region. This groundbreaking initiative focuses on advancing health equity through education, research, and innovation, with a special emphasis on vulnerable populations.
In collaboration with leading European and Iranian institutions, CEGH has developed the region's first competency-based MSc in Global Health program, empowering the next generation of leaders to tackle complex public health challenges.
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Digital Solutions for Migrant and Refugee Health: a Framework for Analysis and Action
The WHS Academic Alliance - Lancet Regional Health Europe launched the joint Commission on Health, Migration, and Climate Change in 2024, co-chaired by Luciano Saso (Sapienza University) and Stephen Matlin (Imperial College London). Climate change drives and intensifies migration by exacerbating health risks, disrupting healthcare access, and worsening social determinants of health. Acting as a multiplier, it amplifies displacement drivers like resource scarcity, food insecurity, extreme weather, and habitat destruction, creating unique challenges for migrants and host countries alike. The recent publication explores these key issues.
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Meet the Key Players in Global Health: The WHS Academic Alliance People
Who is behind the WHS Academic Alliance, the academic network of the World Health Summit? Meet the top global health players from leading global health institutions around the world.
More about the WHS Academic Alliance, its Members and Activities
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Charité Center for Global Health
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WHS Regional Meeting 2025
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New Delhi, India
April 25-27, 2025
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Berlin, Germany & Digital
October 12-14, 2025
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