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THIS World Health Day, the World Health Organisation (WHO) is celebrating its 75th anniversary. Established in 1948 by countries around the world, WHO’s mission is to promote health, ensure global safety, and serve the vulnerable, with the ultimate goal of achieving the highest level of health and well-being for all. With a presence in over 150 offices and working with 194 member states across six regions.

At the heart of #healthforall is the attainment of universal health coverage, where people can have access to affordable, equitable, good quality and sustainable health care.

In Sub-Saharan Africa, around 25% of health expenditure comes out of people’s pockets and as a result, hundreds of millions of people have been pushed further below the poverty line.

African countries are facing unprecedented health emergencies, driven by conflict, political instability, and climate change. Climate events are driving outbreaks of measles, polio, cholera, and yellow fever.

The Covid-19 pandemic rolled back the hard-won gains made in health, with a drop in routine coverage of essential services having been noted.

For example, WHO estimates that immunisation coverage will not return to 2019 levels until 2027 without immediate action to catch up and get back to normal.

In Zimbabwe, several significant public health milestones have been realized over the past three decades. WHO has played a vital role supporting the government of Zimbabwe in attaining 90% immunisation coverage, eradicating polio in 2005, and eliminating maternal and neonatal tetanus in 2002, all of which have been sustained to date.

Additionally, Zimbabwe has seen a reduction in morbidity and mortality due to vaccine-preventable diseases, resulting in a steady decline in maternal and under-five mortalities.

While current mortality rates remain unacceptably high, at 462 deaths per 100 000 live births and 65 deaths per 1 000 live births respectively, the continuous positive reduction of mortalities is encouraging.

WHO remains committed to supporting the government of Zimbabwe in achieving health for all and building resilient health systems that can withstand shocks, including those beyond the Covid-19 pandemic.