On a Global Health Risk Framework for the Future (GHRF) on 13 March 2016
On Sunday 13 March 2016 will be held the Asia Launch cum Seminar of the Report Recommendations of the Commission on a Global Health Risk Framework for the Future (GHRF) as co-organised by the U.S. National Academy of Medicine, the WHO Collaborating Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Control at the School of Public Health of The University of Hong Kong, The Centre for Medical Ethics and Law of The University of Hong Kong, and the Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre. The event will gather high-level stakeholders in health, finance, and policy from East and Southeast Asia to review the findings of the GHRF Commission and engage in productive discussion about next steps for reform.
The Neglected Dimension of Global Security: A Framework to Counter Infectious Disease Crises
13 March 2016 | 15:00-17:00 (followed by tea reception) The University of Hong Kong | Large Moot Court, 2/F, Cheng Yu Tung Tower, Centennial Campus
Speakers include:
Victor J DZAU, Chair, International Oversight Group of the Commission; President, U.S. National Academy of Medicine
Lawrence GOSTIN, Commissioner; University Professor & Faculty Director, O’Neill Institute for National Global Health Law, Georgetown University; Director, WHO Collaborating Centre on Public Health Law & Human Rights
Gabriel M LEUNG, Commissioner; Co-Director of WHO Collaborating Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Control; Dean, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong
Peter MATHIESON, President & Vice-Chancellor, The University of Hong Kong
Peter SANDS, Commission Chair; Former Group Chief Executive Officer, Standard Chartered PLC; Senior Fellow, Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, Harvard Kennedy School
TAN Chorh Chuan, Member, International Oversight Group of the Commission; President, National University of Singapore
Online registration is at https://hkuems1.hku.hk/hkuems/ec_hdetail.aspx?guest=Y&ueid=41531
Set up by the US National Academy of Medicine in 2015 following the large-scale outbreaks of SARS, H1N1, Ebola, MERS-CoV and other emerging infectious diseases, the Commission comprises 17 members from different countries and experts in finance, governance, R&D, health systems, and social sciences. The object of the Commission is to make recommendations for an effective global architecture for recognizing and mitigating the threat of epidemic infectious diseases, the process of which has been informed by 11 public workshops held across four continents as well as the solicitation of inputs from over 250 experts and stakeholders worldwide.
The Commission’s report, released on 13 January 2016 and presented to the 138th Meeting Session of the Executive Board of the World Health Organization thereafter, argued that pandemic prevention and response is essential to both national security and global economic stability—not just a matter of health. The Commission recommended an investment of $4.5 billion per year to strengthen national public health systems, improve global response coordination and capabilities, and accelerate R&D. Investment in these areas constitutes a sustainable global health risk framework that could protect populations from known and emerging infectious diseases and avert an estimated $60 billion per year in economic losses from pandemics.
