Health Ministers and Environment Ministers, Experts, Officials and other key stakeholders from Small Island Development States (SIDS) of Africa and South East Asian regions, namely Cabo Verde, Comoros, Madagascar, Maldives, Mauritius, Reunion Island, Sao Tome and Principes and Seychelles participated in the World Health Organization (WHO) Third Global Conference on Climate Change and Health on 21-22 March 2018 in Mauritius. This special Initiative was launched by the WHO in view of supporting SIDS countries in the adoption of a streamlined and concerted approach to climate change and health. During the conference, the participants focused on climate change and health, with a vision that by 2030 all health systems in SIDS will be resilient to climate variability and change. The importance of a collaborative approach towards having a regional and national institutional mechanism for mitigating the impacts of climate change has been stressed upon by the WHO.
Dr Joy St John, Assistant Director-General Climate and Other Determinants of Health in WHO Head Quarters, Geneva, Dr Magaran Bagayoko, delegated by Dr Moeti, Regional Director of the WHO Regional Office for Africa, and representatives from various international institutions, including United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Indian Ocean Commission participated in the conference. Dr St John addressed the representatives from the different SIDS countries at the opening of the conference and said that ‘SIDS should speak in one strong voice to make them heard by the whole world as SIDS countries contribute little to climate change and yet, they suffer most of the adverse effects of climate change.’ She reiterated her full support and commitment in supporting SIDS countries in mitigating the impacts of climate change. She pointed out that ‘the outcome of deliberations once finalized will be submitted in the form of a Regional Action Plan at the forthcoming World Health Assembly in May 2018 in view of obtaining support and assistance to enable SIDS to cope with health and climate challenges’. During the two day conference, the SIDS countries recognise that climate change cannot be dissociated from health as it affects, in profoundly adverse ways, some of the most fundamental determinants of health, including clean air, safe drinking water, sufficient food and secure shelter.
