? ‘ Regionalism and the re-invigoration of global health diplomacy: Lessons from Africa

1. ? ‘Regionalism and the re-invigoration of global health diplomacy: Lessons from Africa Global Health Diplomacy: A way forward in International Affairs Chatham House 28-29 June 2011 William Onzivu Lecturer in Law Bradford University Law School University of Bradford Email: w.onzivu@bradford.ac.uk

2. PRESENTATION OUTLINE • African regional organizations as active players, negotiating and implementing global health initiatives. Health is a crucial determinant/advocacy tool in the trade and political integration agendas. • This brief presentation identifies the drivers, relevant case studies, the merits and limits of African regionalism for global health diplomacy. • Concludes on options to strengthen global health diplomacy in African regionalism.

3. African regional health diplomacy: some drivers • Trade liberalization in the context of globalization. • New liberalism and the social sector: flexible regionalism. • Africa and world’s disease and other health burdens: a human security issue • Bilateral ism between RIOs(and their Member States) and other entities, China, EU, US • Emergency of a new era of global health diplomacy : Senegal and South Africa’s membership of ECOWAS and SADC respectively.

4. WHO law, global health diplomacy and regionalism • WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control(WHO FCTC) • International Health Regulations(IHR) • Climate Change and Health • Legal provision for regionalism and observer status • Informal regional(African) groups: merits and demerits • Global diplomatic learning process

5. Case studies of regionalism and global health diplomacy • The African Union: Health objective, role of access to medicines, TB, malaria, polio, health systems and financing, work with the UN system and WHO: economic and political agenda, role of AU ministerial forums in health diplomacy • The Economic Community of West African States(ECOWAS)- West African Health Organization: Intra-regional negotiations, work with WHO, Avian flu, reproductive health, policy harmonization, work with German Development Cooperation through KfW. • Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa(COMESA): Health objective, work with actors, primary role in advancing trade liberalization agenda, bilateral cooperation, recent involvement with the FCTC. • East African Community (EAC): Health objective, role of ministerial forums, health diplomacy activities

6. Regionalism and challenges to global health diplomacy • Inappropriate regional priorities: • Capture by vested interests – where is the public interest? • Other governance challenges • Multiplicity of inhabitants of regionalism but limited role for civil society .

7. Advancing health diplomacy through regionalism • Enhanced cooperation with relevant global agencies • Health diplomacy capacity building • Promoting adaptive governance • Institutionalize evaluation • Enhancing participation at the regional and global level

8. CONCLUSION African regionalism will progressively occupy an important policy and functional space in advancing global health diplomacy. The challenge for all actors is to concretely embed global health into the foreign, trade and other non-health sector within regionalism. On the other hand, actors need to strengthen diplomacy within the health sector. Multi-stakeholder participation needs to be encouraged and actions of all actors evaluated and strengthened.

9. THANK YOU ALL