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From: Alice Fabbri alealifab@gmail.com Report the WHO watchers prepared on the third day of the 130th Executive Board just uploaded. The report is available at:http://www.ghwatch.org/node/448 Highlights from the third day of the 130th Executive Board Geneva, 18.01.12 Nomination of the Director-General Dr Margaret Chan was nominated by the Executive Board for a second term as Director-General of the Organisation. This nomination will be submitted for approval to the Sixty-fifth World Health Assembly in May 2012. The first part of this session was not open to NGOs. When the session was opened again, Dr Chan took the floor thanking the Board for their confidence and support. She stated that the work in public health is never done, with the exception of disease eradication, and reaffirmed her commitment by saying: “First time I promised to work tirelessly. I have done so.[...] I will work even harder to ensure everyone reaches the highest attainable status of health”.

From: amit sen Issues for consideration at the 130th Session of the WHO Executive Board We hereby submit the comments and suggestions included below (see link) regarding some of the items appearing on the agenda of the WHO Executive Board. PHM is committed to a stronger WHO, adequately funded, with appropriate powers and playing the leading role in global health governance. PHM follows closely the work of the WHO, through the governing bodies and the secretariat. Across our networks we have technical experts and grass roots organisations with close interests in many of the issues coming before you over the next week. However, WHO does not make it easy for civil society NGOs to contribute to its consideration of the issues coming before it. It limits the number of organisations which have an official relationship with WHO and has recently restricted access to spaces in the Palais de Nations during the WHA. You may also know that civil society organisations have to submit their st

December blog by Claudio Schuftan This month, I look forward to a world conference being held next June, in Rio de Janeiro. This is the ‘Rio+20’ Conference on Sustainable Development, whose website is at http://www.uncsd2012.org/rio20/ The overarching declared purpose of Rio+20 is once again, to raise consciousness of and arouse conscience on the environmental dimension, which until late last century was more or less forgotten. Veterans of world summits on any topic have reason for scepticism, but they are needed, and we must all do our best to see that Rio+20 really does mark a time when we all move towards living in ways that are fair and sane. Adequate good nutrition is smack in the middle of sustainable development. Neither is possible without the other. But as I consider these issues, like you, I am also reflecting on what has been and is happening this year in the stre