Washington D.C. 17 July 2024 (PAHO) – As countries of the Americas continue to recover and rebuild from the COVID-19 pandemic, experts from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) convened to discuss global health security and recommit to ongoing collaboration to improve public health in the Americas.
During the event, Building on a Successful Partnership for 2024 & Beyond, held at the PAHO headquarters in Washington D.C. on 15 July, participants discussed the organizations’ 30-year partnership, and the continued critical health challenges and opportunities for the region.
PAHO’s partnership with USAID is “more crucial than ever following the devastating impact of COVID-19 in the Americas,” Mary Lou Valdez, Deputy Director of PAHO said during her opening remarks. “This is an opportunity to refocus and recommit on priorities and identify new areas of collaboration.
For Michael Camilleri, Acting Assistant Administrator for USAID’s Latin America and the Caribbean Bureau, over the last three decades, PAHO and USAID have “collaborated to enhance health and well-being in the Americas,” with “incredible results.”
With the region continuing to face critical health inequalities, the rise in extreme weather events, and the severe dengue epidemic, the USAID-PAHO partnership is crucial “to promote strong health systems, protect people from the threat of pandemics, address health needs throughout the course of life, and address emerging challenges such as migration, climate change, and mental health,” Camilleri added.
During the event, PAHO Director, Jarbas Barbosa, and Atul Gawande, USAID Assistant Administrator for Global Health engaged in a high-level dialogue to discuss the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, the interrelation between health, economic, and climate security, the rise in cases of bird flu and the importance of a One Health approach, as well as priority areas of collaboration moving forward.
During his intervention, and looking forward to ongoing collaboration with PAHO, Dr. Gawande highlighted the importance of strengthening primary health care in the Region, increasing the health workforce, and improving response to emerging threats. “Speed is of the essence when it comes to managing and controlling outbreaks,” he said. For USAID, PAHO’s role in health security in the region is key, “particularly when it comes to strengthening surveillance in the animal sector.”
Looking forward to the opportunities posed by the amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR), and the future pandemic treaty, “it is important that our partnership remains strong,” and “based on lessons learned,” Dr. Barbosa agreed. Together, “we need to rethink how countries can be better prepared for health emergencies, for the worst-case scenario,” he added.
Following the high-level dialogue, a panel discussion to celebrate 30 years of partnership was held to explore ways in which the collaboration with USAID has enabled PAHO to achieve its health goals throughout the Americas, including on issues such as digital transformation, maternal and child mortality, and the elimination of communicable diseases. For USAID, the partnership has also inspired the Agency to bring new innovations to its work in other areas of the world.
Crucial lessons from USAID’s collaboration with PAHO during the COVID-19 pandemic in Peru were also discussed. These include the need to ensure ongoing monitoring and evaluation, as well as consolidated databases, to facilitate informed decision-making. These elements were crucial in reducing COVID-19 mortality and morbidity in the country.
“A true partner can be counted on in times of crisis, and USAID has exemplified this many times, ” PAHO Assistant Director, Rhonda Sealey-Thomas said.
“I look forward to building upon the shared history of our two great organizations and I reaffirm our commitment to working together to advance the public health priorities in the Americas in the years ahead.”
