Lusaka, 14 November 2016 - The WHO Country Office in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Community Development and Social Welfare and the University of Zambia  organized a workshop for orientation of government ministries and other stakeholders on implementation of Health in All Policies (HiAP) from 30th October to 4th November 2016. In order to support the implementation of HiAP by member countries, WHO launched a series of trainer of trainers’ program in different regions in the year 2015. Following the training which was held in Johannesburg in December 2015 for the WHO African Region, Zambia is making the initial steps to orient different sectors on HiAP and its implementation. The WHO Regional Office for Africa provided technical support to facilitate this workshop.

The Programme Manager for Health Promotion and Social Determinants at the WHO Regional Office for Africa, Professor Davison Munodawafa who was in the country to support the HiAP workshop  also met with senior government officials to discuss the strengthening of mechanisms through which HiAP could be implemented. During a meeting at the Policy Analysis and Coordination Unit, the Permanent Secretary, Mr. Bernard Kampasa assured WHO that Zambia had in place a system for policy formulation and review which would support mainstreaming of health in all sector policies.

The workshop was intended to build capacity for implementation of the Health in All Policies (HiAP) in different sectors in Zambia. The specific objectives of the workshop were to:

1. Train a core group of trainers on HiAP in Zambia;
2. Document the implementation of health in different sector policies and discuss the success, the gaps and challenges the different sectors are facing;
3. Orientation of key government ministries and stakeholders on HiAP implementation using the new WHO modules/manual;
4. Develop policy briefs on health issues which require multi-sectoral actions;
5. Come up with a roadmap including a framework for roll-out of the HiAP initiative to the subnational levels including a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation framework and
6. Strengthen mechanisms for collaboration, information sharing and exchange of experiences and lessons learned.

Speaking at the official opening of the HiAP workshop, the Minister of Health, Dr. Chitalu Chilufya said that Zambia like many other developing countries was facing a double burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases, high infant and maternal mortality and recurring epidemics. He said that the health sector had made tremendous investments targeted at bringing quality and affordable health care as close to the families as possible and that significant improvements in  health status had been achieved particularly in reducing maternal and child deaths.  He however said that health issues could not be addressed by the health sector alone and emphasized the importance of inter-sectoral collaboration in addressing determinants of health in order to improve the health of the population. He also emphasized the role of HiAP in the Sustainable Development Goals.  “The Sustainable Development Goal number 3 on health calls for “ensuring healthy lives and promotion of wellbeing for all ages”. It provides us an opportunity to improve the provision of quality health services and realizing the 2030 targets of making Zambia a medium-income country of healthy and productive people”, he said.

Speaking at the same function, the WHO Representative, Dr. Jacob Mufunda stated that the World Health Organisation considers Health in All policies as an important tool for tackling determinants of health. “Health systems are subject to powerful social and economic influences that often pull them from their intended goals. We need reforms that redesign systems in a more holistic manner, in which public health is a shared responsibility that recognizes the important role of individuals and communities.  We also require interventions that respond to a broader range of individual and societal factors that contribute to ill-health, disability and premature deaths”, he said.

The Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Community Development and Social Welfare, Dr. Davy Chikamata said that his ministry was committed to implementing HiAP by involving the community in implementing policies which impact on health. This would be done through existing structures at the community level.

The participating government Ministries at the workshop included: Health; Gender; General Education; Communication and transport; Policy analysis and coordination; Development and planning; Local government; Transport and communications; Youth and sport and Commerce and trade. The workshop included a 3 days planning meeting to orient a core group of 13 trainers on HiAP  which also involved adapting the training materials and developing an orientation training plan. The planning meeting was followed by the orientation of government ministries by the core trainers.

Health in all policies is an approach to public policies across sectors that systematically takes into account the health implications of decisions, seeks synergies, and avoids harmful health impacts, in order to improve population health and health equity. it is premised on health-related rights and obligations and accountability of policy makers for health impacts at all levels. It also stresses on the consequences of public policies on health systems, determinants of health and well-being as well as sustainable development.

In the African Region, accelerating response to the determinants of health is one of the key strategic directions for achieving sustainable health development. Countries of the Who African Region have participated actively in global conferences that have discussed health in all policies including the Alma- Ata conference on primary health care (1978), Ottawa conference on health promotion (1986), the Adelaide conference on health promotion (1988); Nairobi conference on health promotion (2009); and the World conference on Social Determinants of Health (2011) including the Helsinki conference on health promotion (2013).

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For more information contact:
Nora Mweemba, Health Promotion Officer
WHO Country Office in Zambia
+260 211 255322
mweemban [at] who.int (mweemban[at]who[dot]int)

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01 Hon. Minister of Health, Dr. Chitalu Chilufya (centre), WHO Rep., Dr. Jacob. Mufunda (right), Programme Manager for Health Promotion, WHO AFRO, Prof. D. Munodawafa, at the HiAP workshop.

02 Hon. Minister of Health, Dr. Chitalu Chilufya (4th from left) with participants from different government ministries  at the opening of the HiAP workshop.

03 Participants at the HiAP meeting