President John Dramani Mahama is set to deliver a keynote address today, Monday, May 18, at the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva.
The Assembly, the primary decision-making body of the World Health Organisation (WHO), convenes global leaders to establish strategic health priorities, approve operational budgets, and coordinate responses to global public health emergencies.
A central pillar of the President’s address will be the ‘Accra Reset Initiative’, a project he champions to promote “health sovereignty.”
Mr Mahama is expected to challenge global leaders to rethink the positioning of the Global South, particularly amid significant cuts to international donor funding.
His speech will emphasise the urgent need for developing nations to build self-reliant health systems.
President Mahama will also hold bilateral meetings and host an Accra Reset side event on the theme, “Geneva Clarion Call.”
The President was received at the airport by the Director General of the WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and Mrs Nane Annan, wife of the late UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
Mr Mahama was taken on a tour of the Kofi Annan Lounge at the airport, a space dedicated to his memory by the Swiss government.
The spotlight of the world will be on Ghana with over 80 invitations to side events of global health Institutions, focusing on Ghana’s remarkable strides in health care delivery such as the Free Primary Health Care, the Ghana Medical Trust fund and the robust National Health Insurance Scheme.