Quinquennial Report 2018‑2022 of the Director of the Pan American Sanitary Bureau: Championing Health Equity for Sustainable Development. Executive Summary

Abstract

This is the Executive Summary of the Quinquennial Report 2018-2022 of the Director of the Pan American Sanitary Bureau: Championing Health Equity for Sustainable Development. It highlights the achievements of the Pan American Sanitary Bureau (PASB) during the previous five years, contextualizes significant challenges, summarizes the main issues faced, and presents conclusions. During this period PASB continued to support the progress of Member States toward the realization of universal health, responded to various health emergencies, supported the development of resilient health systems, and partnered with countries to address the social determinants of inequitable health access and outcomes. The summary focuses on two overarching challenges of this period, the COVID-19 pandemic and the financial crisis of the Pan American Health Organization, both of which were exacerbated by the COVID-related “infodemic” and unprecedented delays in the payment of quota contributions. Though both of these challenges significantly hampered the work of PASB, the financial crisis threatened the very existence of the Organization. A central theme of lessons learned is the absolute necessity to place equity at the heart of strategies for achieving universal health. Other key lessons, especially highlighted during the pandemic, include the need for greater investment in regional self-sufficiency for essential medicines and medical products, the vital importance of maintaining strong national vaccination programs and protecting the Revolving Fund for Access to Vaccines, and the crucial function of PASB as a politically neutral technical agency that holds the trust of all Member States by serving as honest broker for the health of all the peoples of the Americas.