Health in All Policies (HiAP) 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 improves accountability of policymakers for health impacts at all levels of policy-making and includes an emphasis on the consequences of public policies on health systems, determinants of health and well-being.
At this side event, five countries and regions – South Australia, Finland, Thailand, the Government of Québec and Sudan – will share their experiences on implementing HiAP in their countries and regions and conclude by launching a global network for Health in All Policies. Discussions will cover:
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progress made amidst changing development and political imperatives and their lessons learnt;
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framing Health in All Policies within the drive for equity and the need to respond to action for SDGs;
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broadening the definition of health to include physical, mental, spiritual, and social dimensions of health and encouraging multi-actor participation in national level governance mechanisms;
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and by actively promoting cross-sectorial cooperation and policy coherence at national and regional level.
Country representatives will also launch a global network to strengthen and institutionalise HiAP and facilitate its implementation at domestic and international levels. The Global Network for Health in All Policies (GNHiAP) should help countries to achieve all health-related SDGs and move towards Universal Health Coverage.