Global conflicts, sluggish economies and the havoc wrought by climate change may dominate the headlines, but there is some good news. The World Health Organization (WHO) Results Report 2023, the most comprehensive to date, shows that the world is reaching key milestones in health.
Released ahead of the 2024 World Health Assembly, which runs from 27 May to 1 June, the report shows progress towards dozens of targets, including healthier populations, universal health coverage, and health emergencies protection.
The report says that the target of a billion more people enjoying better health and well-being will likely be met by 2025, driven primarily by improvements in air quality and access to water, sanitation and hygiene measures.
In terms of universal health coverage, 30 percent of countries are moving ahead in terms of essential health services – largely due to increased HIV service coverage – and providing financial protection.
Among other highlights, the world’s first malaria vaccine was administered to more than two million children in Ghana, Kenya, and Malawi, reducing mortality by 13 percent among children eligible for vaccination.
[See more: A top health researcher says Covid-19 did not originate in a Wuhan lab]
Elsewhere, 14 countries eliminated at least one neglected tropical disease from 2022 to 2023. Bangladesh eliminated two.
The first-ever all-oral treatment regimens for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis were meanwhile made available in 2022, allowing the highest number of people with tuberculosis to get treatment since monitoring began almost 30 years ago.
Tobacco use is declining in 150 countries, 56 of which are on track to achieve the global target for reducing tobacco use by 2025.
Following the WHO’s call to eliminate cervical cancer, another 25 countries have introduced the human papillomavirus vaccine, bringing the total to 58 that have introduced the vaccine since the initiative was launched in 2020.
“With concrete and concerted action to accelerate progress,” the world could meet “a substantial subset” of health-related Sustainable Development Goals, said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director-general. “Our goal is to invest even more resources where they matter most – at the country level – while ensuring sustainable and flexible financing to support our mission,” he added.
