WHA78 Side Event: Centering Human Rights To Address Alcohol Harm

Centering Human Rights To Address Alcohol Harm

A Catalyst For Action Across An Evolving Global Health Environment

Official Side Event at the 78th Session of the World Health Assembly (WHA78)

Event Co-Sponsors

Slovenia MoH, Latvia MoH, Estonia MoH, Norway MoH, Lesotho MoH, Movendi International, World Cancer Research Fund International, International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), Law & Non-Communicable Diseases Unit, University of Liverpool, UNICEF, UN Inter-Agency Taskforce on NCDs, World Health Organization

Date

May 23, 2025

Time

18.00 – 19.20

Venue

Room VII

Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland

A light dinner will be catered for before the event begins.

Background

Alcohol harm intersects with nearly every major global health challenge – from noncommunicable diseases and mental health to maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health, injuries, and health system burdens; as well as, health equity and social determinants of health, global health security and emergency preparedness, nutrition and food security, and reproductive health and rights. In the current global health environment, an increased or even sustained alcohol consumption, may sharply increase communicable diseases such as TB and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS.

Nevertheless, the potential of alcohol policy solutions for accelerated progress across global health areas remains largely untapped.

A human-rights-based approach offers an encompassing, novel, and innovative framework to change that – by centring the people’s rights to health, development, and protection from corporate harm. It frames alcohol policies as a justice-driven solution with the potential to accelerate progress across the Sustainable Development Goals.

Three years after the adoption of the WHO Global Alcohol Action Plan the 75^th World Health Assembly is an opportunity to share experiences, take stock of progress made and chart possible areas for the global community to support national agendas and efforts.

In preparation of and contribution to the upcoming UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs, this event will explore how a human rights-based approach to tackle alcohol determinants can catalyze efforts across global health and development.

Objectives

The high-level side event at the 78^th World Health Assembly will explore novel insights from a human rights-based approach to alcohol policies. It will provide concrete examples drawn from an innovative analysis about the benefits of actions on alcohol policies across global health areas.

Participants will discuss, share lessons learned and map key challenges in developing and implementing evidence-based alcohol policy solutions while providing inspiration on how to make real progress towards the 2030 global commitments.

With this discussion, the event can make a timely contribution towards the implementation of the WHO Global Alcohol Action Plan, the UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs, and the deliberations at the 78^th World Health Assembly.

Audience

The target audience of this high-level 78th World Health Assembly side event is member state and country delegates , WHO officials and senior management, leaders and experts from the areas of global health and human rights from, countries, academia, civil society,  and UN organizations.

Preliminary Programme

Moderator: Kristina Sperkova, International President, Movendi International.

1. Welcoming and opening remarks
2. Alcohol consumption in an evolving global health environment

Horizon scanning session

3. A human-rights based approach to alcohol policies

Presentation and report soft-launch: Prof. Amandine Garde, Law & Non-Communicable Diseases Unit, University of Liverpool and Dr. Nikhil Gokani, University of Essex

4. High-level segment: Charting alcohol policy efforts worldwide – what, why, how?
   • Dr. Vesna-Kerstin Petric, Head of the Office for Cooperation with WHO at the Ministry of Health of Slovenia,
   • Line Vold, Director General, Department of Public Health, Ministry of Health and Care Services, Norway
   • Dr. Asela Gunawardhana, Director General, Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka (tbc)
   • Jana Feldmane, Director, Public Health Department, Ministry of Health, Latvia
   • Brigitta Õunmaa, Health Behavior Policy Manager, Ministry of Social Affairs, Estonia
   • Dr. Rüdiger Krech, Director of Health Promotion, World Health Organisation
   • Dr. Devora Kestel, Director of Mental Health and Substance Use, World Health Organisation

5. Interactive panel: Perspectives on the human rights based approach as catalyst for alcohol policy and global health progress

• Lucía Pérez Gómez,  IFMSA Vice-President for External Affairs
• Kate Oldridge-Turner, Head of Policy & Public Affairs, WCRF International
• Nick Banatvala, Head Secretariat of the United Nations Interagency Task Force on NCDs WHO
• Ferdinant M. Sonyuy, President & CEO, Reconciliation and Development Association (RADA), Cameroon

6. Questions and comments from the audience
7. Summary remarks from Prof. Amandine Garde and Dr. Nikhil Gokani
8. Closing by the moderator