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The power of partnership: Consortium representation at the 2022 Geneva Health Forum
The 2022 Geneva Health Forum – a gathering of key actors in the global health space – took place on 3-5 May. Our Consortium partner, Merck, sponsored the event. In addition to organizing a booth showcasing the work of the Consortium, Merck also hosted a session on 4 May titled “Building strong partnerships to end the neglected tropical disease, schistosomiasis”.
The Merck organized session included a panel discussion focused on (1) the importance of partnerships in the field of neglected tropical disease (NTD), (2) understanding the achievements that have been made to date through collaborations like the Pediatric Praziquantel Consortium, and (3) encouraging a call to action for more such partnerships to be established in the NTD space.
The session was moderated by Dr. Jutta Reinhard-Rupp, Chair of the Consortium Board and Head of the Global Health Institute at Merck, and featured representatives from the World Health Organization (WHO), END Fund, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, and FIND. The Consortium was represented by Okba Haj-Ali Saflo (Global Health Clinical Lead at Merck), Maurice Odiere (Principal Research Scientist at the Kenya Medical Research Institute), and Beatrice Greco (Head of R&D and Access at the Global Health Institute, Merck).
Our Consortium partner TUM (Technischen Universität München) also participated in this year's Geneva Health Forum with a panel discussion around the question of how the private sector can become a key player in implementing the One Health concept. The session was co-led by Prof. Dr. Andrea Winkler of TUM and included four high-ranking speakers, including Dr. Jutta Reinhard-Rupp.
The discussion emphasized the added value of a One Health approach, the private sector’s responsibility to engage in One Health, as well as the potential entry points for cross-sectoral and multilateral collaboration.
Prof. Dr. Andrea Winkler also moderated the One Health opening discussion with leading experts from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the WHO, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). These four organizations came together for the first time in a public forum to discuss the changing One Health landscape, and the inclusion of environmental factors in a One Health approach, ultimately challenging the question – One Health: is there a paradigm shift?