The UN General Assembly was convene three High-Level Meetings on health during its 78th session (UNGA 78) in New York in September 2023. These present a historic opportunity for world leaders to place health back on the high-level political agenda as they recommit to ending tuberculosis (TB), delivering universal health coverage (UHC) and strengthening pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response.
At this mid-point towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the world is off track to achieve the health targets by 2030. Millions of people cannot access life-saving and health-enhancing interventions. Out-of-pocket spending on health catastrophically affects over 1 billion people, pushing hundreds of millions of people into extreme poverty. The situation has worsened due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The High-Level Meetings come at a critical moment as the world recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, confronted with multiple humanitarian and climate crises. Upholding the human right to health and building equitable health systems are essential to achieve UHC, to build sustainable prevention, preparedness and response to pandemics as well as other health emergencies, and to ending epidemics such as TB.
High-level meetings
20 September 2023 | Pandemic prevention, preparedness and response
The UN High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response (PPPR) presents an opportunity for Member States to further mobilize political momentum, including through the integration of a multisectoral approach towards pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, given the multifaceted consequences of pandemics.
21 September 2023 | Universal health coverage
This High-Level Meeting presents an opportunity for countries and stakeholders to renew efforts and accelerate progress toward achieving health for all. This will serve as the foundation for executing policies and ensuring responsibility for strengthening health systems for the future, building on the 2019 Political Declaration.
- Information on preparations for the High-level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage
- Zero draft of the Political Declaration on Universal Health Coverage
22 September 2023 | Fight against tuberculosis (TB)
This High-Level Meeting is aimed to undertake a comprehensive review on the achievement of agreed tuberculosis targets 2018 Political Declaration of the first General Assembly high level meeting on TB, and to identify gaps and solutions to accelerate progress towards ending the tuberculosis epidemic by 2030.
