European Commission Directorate General for Inte : Health

Health builds the foundations for inclusive economic growth and development. It is a human right. The EU assists countries that are strengthening their health systems to provide access to quality basic health services for all. It also funds initiatives in other areas that impact on health, e.g. nutrition. The EU aims to contribute to the global fight against poverty and the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals.

'The EU should concentrate its support on strengthening of health systems to ensure that their main components - health workforce, access to medicines, infrastructure and logistics and decentralised management - are effective enough to deliver basic equitable and quality health care for all without discrimination on any grounds as defined by Art. 21 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights'. (Communication on 'The EU Role in Global Health', 2010).

The development and prosperity of every country is intrinsically linked to the health and welfare of its people. A society lacking preventive health action and provision of quality health care inevitably faces a higher burden of both communicable and non-communicable disease, affecting the capacity of its citizens, including its children, to develop their full potential, lead productive working lives, and contribute to their country's development.

Access to quality and affordable health care is a fundamental human right. All governments should aspire to offer their citizens quality preventive and curative services, irrespective of their ability to pay.

The EU supports Health Systems Strengthening in a variety of ways. The EU's main focus and commitment is to provide direct support to national governments to assist in the realisation of their strategic health plans.

The EU has adopted a health systems strengthening approach to its work in supporting developing countries. Key requirements for a strong health system include provision of quality services, fit-for-purpose facilities, essential equipment and medicines, well-trained health workers in sufficient numbers, good public health information, and effective management and good governance.

Through its international cooperation programmes, the EU aims to assist partner countries to strengthen their national health systems in a coordinated, comprehensive way so that basic health services are available to all, including the most vulnerable and marginalised sectors of the population. EU development programmes offers financial and technical support to governments for their health sector development programmes and encourages non-state actors to contribute through advocacy and increasing demand for quality health care and by reaching underserved populations, in order to achieve 'Universal Health Coverage'.

In addition, the EU contributes to specific global health initiatives, contributes to the response to global or regional health crises, and encourages non-state actors to contribute to combating diseases and to building resilient health systems

Besides implementing EU health aid, the European Commission is also active in helping to better coordinate health aid and global health policy, together with EU Member States, and promotes EU policies and aid effectiveness in global fora and on the boards of global health initiatives and funds.

The EU supports global health initiatives such as the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, and GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, contributes to the response to global, regional and national health crises, supports UN agencies such as WHO to support donor coordination and advance the aid effectiveness agenda at country level, and supports non-state actors to contribute to and support building resilient national health systems and reaching universal health coverage.

The EU and its Member States together are the world's biggest donor of development aid. They have played a major role in shaping the new development agenda. The 2030 Agenda for sustainable development with 17 'Sustainable Development Goals' (SDGs) endorsed by the General Assembly of the United Nations in September 2015 demonstrate the scale and ambition of this new universal Agenda. They build on the Millennium Development Goals and complete what these did not achieve.

Health is entwined in almost all of the SDGs; however, SDG 3 specifically relates to health with overall goal 'ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages'. Achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) is key to achieving this goal and this guides EU support for global health. UHC means that more and better quality essential health care and prevention services are available to more people, and more are protected against the financial risk of disease that can cause poverty.