Last Update:  March 14, 2005  

Fourth International Forum in Defense of the Peoples Health

23 - 25 January 2005, Porto Alegre,  Brasil

 

Introduction

 

Even before the last three World Social Forums in Porto Alegre and Mumbai,  international forums dedicated to the defense of the people's right to health have been organised. The main purpose of these initiatives was to call for action around the issue of universal right to health and health care from social movements around the globe

 

In January 2004 the Third International Health Forum was held in Mumbai with around around 700 participants from 50 countries. The Mumbai Forum reinforced the idea approved in Porto Alegre in 2003, where we decided to organise this First World Social Forum on Health with the purpose of an agenda building for action. The main goal will be the designing and building of alternative health system reforms processes oriented for the organization of national public health and social security systems.

 

The idea is to develop a deep analysis of the political health process of each country, looking for a comprehensive approach that enhances the possibility of alternative projects with wide social and political support. But those alternative projects will not have possibilities of future if we don´t ask for an international perspective, where the regional economic agreements are a privileged scenario.

 

The First World Forum on Health will be held in Porto Alegre - Brasil from the 23^rd to the 25^th of January 2005 at the Salao De Atos Pontificia Universidade catolica Do Rio Grande Do Sol.

 

The main subjects of the Health Forum will be

 

1. To share a solid analytical perspective of the current health and social security reforms, considering the map of different social actors in favor or against the anti neoliberal resistances and proposals. This map must give us the picture of possibilities of change at each country, region and internationally;
   
   

2. to define the main characteristics of the health and social security alternatives in terms of social and economical reality, but putting in perspective the sustainable alternatives towards universality and equity in health for everybody
   
   

3. to analyze and propose concrete alternatives for the consequences of free trade agreements in the field of food, drugs, equipments and professional capacity drainage. In this field is necessary to recognize the importance of the debate around the intellectual property status, essential drugs and the genome property
   
   

4. To propose an alternative process for the human resources management and continuous education'
   
   

5. To study and propose different strategies and organization alternatives for social mobilization and power building to achieve the universal right to health
   
   

6. To prepare the discussions background for the II Peoples Health Assembly, that will be held in Cuenca - Ecuador , in July 2005

Programme

 

	23/1/2005
8:30	Opening Session Greetings of the delegations gifts, presentation of the Plan of Work of the Forum.
9.00	Panel:  1 Global scene:  Macroeconomics and Health (Trade Agreements, Free Trade and the attacks on the Health as Right, Right to the Health and Social security, etc.)
11.15	Panel 2:  Systems of health, social security and the guarantee of Human Rights (sharing of experiences from different Continents).  Analysis of the current policies and possibilities of changes in the processes of reform of the health and the social security for guarantee of the human and social rights.
13.00	Lunch
14.00	Panel 3:  Human and Social Rights & Health/Social Security
16.00	Works in groups in 22 parallel sessions. Construction of proposals of contents and forms of action. International agendas in defence of health and social security.
18.30	Panel 4:  Presentation of synthesis of Alternative Informe Latin American on the Right the Health and American Latin Campaign for the Right the Health
19.30	Closing of the works of the day.
	24/1/2005
8.30	Panel 5:  Experiences of regional economic systems:  Européia Community, MERCOSUL, Andean Pact, NEPAD, CAFTA, NAFTA, CARICOM...  How to construct a social agenda for the right to the health and the social security in the context of the regional blocks?
10.45	Panel 6:  Experiences of national and international mobilizations in defence of the Right to the Health and the Social security.  Peoples Health Assembly II in Cuenca – by PHM Equinet Global Health Watch
13.00	Lunch
14.00	Thematic discussions in 22 parallel sessions: The Thematic Panels must produce recommendations for the debates of the Final Plenary.  A organization of health globally –  rights and financing, humanitarian aid and systems of health.  Patents, medicines, 3 x 5, PPP Basis for a new social security.  Social participation and social control of the State –  improving the definitions and flags of Trade agreements, neoliberalism and Health Education in health: Popular education and Professional Education Primary Health Care Mental Health Violence against children Trauma/Accidents and Health care Health security and Sustainable Development.  Dental Health ??? Sexual and Reproductive Rights the Health of the Indigenous People National Legislations and the Right to Health Global problems – Malaria, T.B. etc. Brazilian Health Care System (SUS) Health of the Black Population and the Equity in the Right  to Health.  Food Security and Health Wars and its Impact on Health Health and traditional Knowledge
18.00	Conference:  The experience of the SUS in Brazil Presentation of the experience and the structure of the SUS of Brazil as reference for movements for the health in the international panorama.
19.00	Closing of the works of the day.
	25/1/2005
8.30	Conference:  United Nations, Human Rights and Health
9.30	Plenary:  Adoption of actions recommended through synthesis produced from discussions in panels, debates and work groups.
12.15	Presentation of proposals for the participating organization of this Forum and its International Coordination, regularity and headquarters, executive support and financing of activities.
13.00	Lunch
16.30	Plenary: Discussion for the approval of the Agenda of Action, Conclusions, Recommendations for PHA II in July of 2005.
18.00	Closing Ceremony : Minister of Health to participate
21.00	Get-together for Participants