Community engagement is fundamental to PHC: Health Minister

Addis Ababa, September 6, 2023 (FBC) – Community engagement is fundamental to Primary Health Care (PHC), Dr. Lia Taddese, the Minister of Health – Ethiopia, said in her opening remarks at the International Conference on Primary Health Care (ICPHC).

The International Conference on Primary Health Care 2023 (ICPHC2023) is being held from September 5 to 7 under the theme: “Resilient Primary Health Care: The Foundation of Universal Health Coverage in the Era of Sustainable Development Goals”.

It is learned that the Conference has brought together more than 500 registrants from 50 countries to discuss how countries are moving forward on Primary Health Care in midst of all the crises that the world is facing.

Addressing the conference, Dr. Lia noted that “together, we can revolutionize healthcare access through strong PHC. Let’s build a stronger foundation for universal health coverage (UHC) and achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”

ICPHC2023 is organized by the the Ministry of Health of Ethiopia in collaboration with the International Institute for Primary Health Care and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health organizes.

The overall goal of the conference is to facilitate the attainment of UHC and the health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by strengthening the PHC movement globally.

In addition, ICPH2023 is also said to be a milestone in the final weeks before this year’s UN General Assembly High-Level Meetings on health, which present a historic opportunity to place health back on the high-level political agenda.