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00:00Hello and welcome to yet another edition of your weekly international current affairs program GlobeWatch on the Cameroon radio television with me Charles Ebune Ed from the Starland Hotel here in Yaoundé Cameroon where we are receiving the assistant director general of the World Health Organization.
00:19Doctor Chikwe Ihekwazu, welcome to GlobeWatch.
00:23Thank you very much, Charles.
00:24One of your missions and responsibilities at the World Health Organization, which is the world's medical doctor, is to look at the situation of health emergencies globally. As we speak, what are the most critical health emergencies?
00:43Thank you, Charles. Unfortunately, in the world there are several concurrent emergencies going on. We have a number of them, uninfectious diseases, you know about the Mpox situation that is spreading out of DRC to many other African countries. We also have an emergent Marburg virus situation in Rwanda.
01:04But in addition to that, we have several humanitarian emergencies that are not primarily a health issue but have a big impact on countries and the health of people. So you can think about Sudan, you can think about the crisis in the Middle East. All of these, a combination of these are the emergencies that keep us very busy in the health emergencies department of the World Health Organization.
01:27You just talked about one of them, which for our African audience will be of great concern, the Mpox. What is the situation currently on the continent?
01:39Unfortunately, we have this emergence of a new strain of Mpox. Mpox had been circulating for a while in DRC and in some West African countries. A new strain emerged that caused us a little bit of concern and spread around a few other countries on the continent.
01:56So what we have done is work very closely with the authorities in the DRC to try and define what the situation is. Working with our partners, Africa CDC and many other partners to identify the extent of the problem, educate people on what is causing it and what is leading to transmission and ultimately carry out some public health measures including vaccination but not just vaccination that we hope will lead to ultimately a reduction in cases. Hopefully we can get rid of this altogether.
02:26Mpox is coming when we're just recovering from the cataclysmic health consequences of COVID-19 which sucked and destabilized most economies, caused millions of deaths, eroded financial resources and whatsoever. What is the strategy of the World Health Organization today when it comes to the management of health emergencies?
02:52So the reality of health emergencies and emergent infectious diseases generally is every country has to have a certain level of preparedness to deal with this, to prevent if we're not able to prevent, to detect early in order to enable a rapid response.
03:09You know the COVID pandemic was really a challenge, it was a respiratory virus, a new respiratory virus and when you have a respiratory virus they pose a specific threat because of the ability to transmit from one person to another. The current challenge on Mpox is slightly different. It requires close intimate contact between individuals to spread from one to the other.
03:32So the most important thing is every country has to build a minimum amount of capacity within the country itself in order for that country to be able to prevent, detect and respond. Where WHO comes in is in cases where that capacity is surpassed or where there is then international spread and then we come in and support countries.
03:56So at the moment the objective is to keep supporting countries to develop this capacity in order to do this work themselves.
04:04And one of the ways you do that is the Universal Health and Preparedness Review component. How critical is it in the entire ecosystem of emergency management, response and preparedness?
04:21So this Universal Health and Preparedness Review really is such a critical part and we learnt a lot from the COVID pandemic.
04:31One of the most important lessons that it wasn't possible for the health sector alone to respond to an existential threat like we saw because it has an impact on the economy, on tourism, on education, on every aspect of the economy.
04:47So we also have to work with those aspects of the economy in order to prevent and mitigate the impacts of a crisis.
04:53So in this review we bring together all the arms of government, not only the different ministries but the legislature as well and the different tiers of government in countries where there are multiple tiers to think together ahead of any event.
05:10And that's really what we have done in Cameroon over the last few years. This is a process that started two years ago and is culminating this week.
05:18Really bringing together all the colleagues working in the different parts of the economy, parts of the government to think together what are our responsibilities to prevent, what are our responsibilities to detect and respond and how can we work together around a common goal.
05:34I understand that one of the reasons that brought you to Yaoundé in Cameroon and I presume this should be your first official visit to Cameroon is to see how Cameroon has worked on her universal health and preparedness review strategy.
05:51You were at the meetings before heading to the various encounters you had with government officials including the Prime Minister. What finally did you see of Cameroon's documents?
06:05So what we have seen in Cameroon even before we went into the meeting was a very engaged public sector.
06:14We've seen very good documents addressing specific parts of what a government needs to work together.
06:22So I think a lot of groundwork has been done. It takes a lot of courage for a country to open up itself for a review. It's not an easy thing.
06:29This is a voluntary process. No one has pushed Cameroon to do this. So I think it's really something to praise worthy that Cameroon has said, listen, this is our level of preparedness.
06:42We want to open it up both to examine it ourselves with colleagues in different sectors but also open it to a global process so that our peers, people working in other countries, WHO colleagues can come in.
06:54We can collectively identify opportunities for improvement and then work together in a plan and process to improve on the gaps that we've collectively identified.
07:05Evaluating what you saw and what could be improved, what did you see as the salient points to help keep the public health system always alert?
07:21Yeah, I mean, there are challenges. Every African country has a challenge of finances. We have multiple problems across society, so it's no surprise that Cameroon, just like many other countries, are faced with the challenge of increasing the expenditure on health services.
07:37And, you know, the other thing is how do you coordinate the various aspects of the work being done, especially in public health?
07:45So we made a few recommendations to government to really think again on how to prioritize expenditure on health services so we can reduce the out-of-pocket expenditure on health and so that really take more responsibility as a community, as a public, on how to fund health services.
08:03This is actually a recommendation that came from within the country from colleagues working and recognizing that while it might serve some purpose to have different disease control programs or targeting different health priorities, coming together to build an agency, one institution that will manage some of these things together might be a good idea.
08:24And it's a direction many other African countries are going in.
08:26You met with top government officials, including the Prime Minister. What message did you bring to them during this period when it comes to issues like the universal health care coverage, when it comes to emergency management?
08:41Cameroon should have one of the most effective systems that functioned during COVID-19 with very limited debts. And I'm not saying that the financial fallouts were not colossal. So what message specifically did you bring?
08:56Charles, I think the first thing to say is that I met a Prime Minister, Chief Joseph Nkute, who was really engaged and really understood the nuances of the health sector. And it's not in every country where you have a head of government that really understands how the different parts of government work together around a national priority.
09:16So first thing to say, we met a fairly open door, really an opportunity to engage really strategically around the challenges and priorities. I had a very good conversation with him. So I think we left that meeting understanding, yes, Cameroon has many challenges, like many other countries, but you have an engaged government that is ready to listen, ready to analyze its own circumstances and challenges,
09:46and to act on them. So out of this UHPR process, we expect a good report that will be shared and presented. And I'm confident that the Prime Minister and his cabinet will act on the findings and take the country forward.
10:01You have the health map of the world with you. You know where the diseases are more dangerous. You know what the world is going through in terms of health. Let me limit myself to Africa. When you put the African health map on the table, what do you think are the most urgent issues to handle? Health infrastructure or what?
10:29This is really a challenging question, but let's put it this way. We have an incredibly young continent.
10:38In terms of its population?
10:41In terms of its population.
10:43Plus 600 million young people out of the roughly 1.5 million people in the country.
10:47And what is our biggest trend sometimes can be our biggest weakness. The continent is growing. The population expansion is growing.
10:56I know where you are heading to. HIV and AIDS or sexually transmitted diseases because of the active population.
11:03Maybe not. Because it's a collection of issues. If the population grows too quickly for a government to provide health services for its population, then you don't reap the benefits of that population growth.
11:15So I think there are many challenges. If a virus were to choose an environment to emerge, we have a big population in the middle of the tropics. So there are many challenges that we face. We face socio-economic challenges and many challenges to grow our population.
11:31But I think the young population on the African continent is actually an opportunity for us to face the challenges that we have head on.
11:40You know, keep ourselves alive. I know in many countries, people get excited about big infrastructure projects, new airports, new bridges, roads, all are well and good.
11:50But the key thing is to enjoy all of that. We have to be healthy and we have to be alive. So I think the message to the government of Cameroon today was, yes, health is already on your list of priorities.
12:05But it might benefit all of us just to keep it there and to raise it even a few notches higher in the thinking of how we lead our people.
12:14In a moment, the interview will come to an end. I understand perfectly what you are saying. Currently, we spend roughly $4 billion of African health budgets. The continent needs roughly $26 billion yearly.
12:31If you were to provide or to advise a model of alternative financing to bridge that gap, what could you put on the table?
12:41I think every country has to define how it will raise the resources to support the sector, right?
12:47But there are different models. You can talk about taxation or health insurance and all of them have their value, right?
12:54I think the key thing is how do we maximize the opportunity that the economies of our countries present and make sure that the money, every dollar we spend on health is spent efficiently.
13:07We have many challenges. We are losing our health workforce because colleagues are traveling to countries to work that pay them better.
13:16Many of them are funded, their education, their training is funded by the public sector. So there is an opportunity there to titrate that challenge a little bit more.
13:25There is a challenge of how much we spend on tertiary versus primary health care. So there are many areas where we can think and use the opportunities and the knowledge and the emerging thinking around health financing to drive more efficiency.
13:42Let me end by saying a few years ago, African countries came together on their own in Abuja and declared what is now generally called the Abuja Declaration and promised themselves.
13:54This wasn't a WHO initiative. African countries came together and promised themselves to spend about 15% of their annual budget on health care.
14:04Unfortunately, very few countries have reached that target and we understand that many challenges, the crisis, all sorts of challenges around.
14:13But I think we should aim at that, keep pushing towards that goal and lift our people. A healthy country drives economic growth. It's often not the other way around.
14:24People think when you grow economically, you become healthy. But the data around the world has shown that actually if you have a healthy population, that in of itself drives the country forward into economic development.
14:37Well, in the moment, the interview therefore comes to an end. You are from Nigeria. Nigeria has very great people known globally as the country's ambassadors.
14:48I can talk of Ngozi Mwela Ogunjumbi who is at the World Trade Organization. I can talk of Davido in music. I can talk of others. Or the president of the African Development Bank, Adesina and all the rest.
15:06They are fantastically doing well. You are one of Nigeria's health ambassadors.
15:10How did your experience as an epidemiologist in Nigeria help you manage the World Health Organization, the position where you are today in driving the sector in which you are managing?
15:22Charles, I don't think, it's not just Nigeria. All over the continent, the enterprise in Africa is driving many sectors of endeavor.
15:32I would say across West Africa specifically and even up to Cameroon. We are driven by the same thing. We have the same socialization mostly.
15:43You know, it's a rare privilege. Every day I sit down in Geneva, I recognize that I, just by my position there, I represent the hopes and aspirations of millions of Africans.
15:55So I take that responsibility very seriously and I hope that by our actions and what we do, we are able to contribute to the global growth of the health industry.
16:05Finally, what is the health strategy of the World Health Organization for possibly the next 5 to 10 years when you see how COVID-19 reshaped the way we should be managing situations around the world?
16:20COVID-19 has been both an opportunity in certain ways because it has lifted the attention on the health sector generally in many countries.
16:32But it has also been a big challenge apart from the millions of people that we lost around the world and the impact on the economy.
16:40I think people have come out of this really tired of what they had to do to get out of this pandemic.
16:46So in a way, we want the problem to go away and hope that just by wishing it, the risk of emerging infections has disappeared because we have gone through a pandemic.
16:59Unfortunately, the risks of these viruses remain with us and we have to stay on the ball.
17:06So WHO is pushing very hard for us not to drop the ball, not to lose the investments that every country made in its health sector during the pandemic to increase its capacity
17:19and to make sure that the investments, some very hard investments made in the last few years are there to serve us into the future.
17:27Whether it's human resources, whether it's laboratory infrastructure, many countries built up their health sector
17:32and we have to make sure that those investments stay to serve us, not just today, but into the future.
17:39And with that, we conclude the interview. The Assistant Director General of the World Health Organization, Nigerian-born Chikwe Ihe Kwazu.
17:49Thank you very much indeed for being my guest on the program.
17:52Thank you Charles. All the best to the people of Cameroon. Thank you.
17:55You are welcome.
17:57The International Relations Institute of Cameroon this Wednesday, August 7, 2024.
18:05Today to welcome yet another special guest in a special manner by the choir of the International Relations Institute of Cameroon.
18:26The special guest is the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Tuch,
18:33in the country and on the campus of the International Relations Institute of Cameroon on the invitation of the President of the Republic, Paul Bir.
18:43Cooperation between the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and Cameroon covers several key areas,
18:52including the promotion and protection of human rights, the monitoring of violations of all kinds and capacity building for national institutions.
19:05The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights closely monitors the human rights situation in the crisis regions of our country.
19:18The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is at the oldest and the largest school of diplomacy Africa south of the Sahara,
19:28which has trained plus 10,000 diplomats in more than half a century to deliver a talk on human rights.
19:36To this end, it publishes reports on developments in these situations and proposes solutions to government authorities to protect civilians.
19:50The High Commission also provides training to Cameroon's security forces on the rescue operations and counter-terrorism activities.
20:07Collaboration with the civil society is also important.
20:12Human rights awareness and education programs are implemented to inform the public and promote a culture of respect for human rights.
20:24Today, more than 100 million people globally suffer from human rights violations in an international context,
20:33increasingly becoming hostile to the promotion of human rights and their preservation.
20:40Human rights awareness and education programs are implemented to inform the public and promote a culture of respect for human rights.
20:53For its part, the government of Cameroon is committed to facilitating the working conditions of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Regional Office for Central Africa.
21:08This support is multifaceted, covering both administrative and consular facilities, including privileges and immunities.
21:21The recent offer of the premises to accommodate the new headquarters of the office, free of charge by the head of state, also forms part of this governmental support.
21:35All these actions contribute effectively to the emergence of a society characterized by greater freedom, respect for orders and the consolidation of the rule of law,
21:50as continuously advocated by the head of state, His Excellency Paul Biya, which are necessary for the emergence of our country in 2035.
22:04La disposition du High Commissioner pour les droits humains de l'Union Nationale, Volker Tuch, en Cameroun pour la première fois,
22:13se concentre sur les défis confrontés par la Charte de la liberté dans les temps contemporains.
22:19Les impacts de la triple crise planétaire, du changement climatique, de la perte de biodiversité et de la pollution, continuent de s'éloigner dangereusement à travers le monde.
22:30Et localement, par exemple, le lac Tchad-Bassin est en train de s'éloigner de la pluie, de la pluie erratique et de la désertification,
22:42qui triggère aussi des tensions et des violences, y compris entre les communautés agricoles et agricoles.
22:49Quand nous repensons et regardons le monde aujourd'hui, nous voyons la polarisation et les divisions entre les pays sur la scène globale,
22:57mais aussi entre les communautés, qui deviennent parfois plus entrainées et s'éloignent d'une mentalité d'« nous contre eux »,
23:08ce qui, essentiellement, ferme la porte au dialogue.
23:12Le discours de la haine et ses effets corrosifs sur la cohésion sociale et la stabilité se prolifèrent.
23:20La conférence à l'Institut international des relations de Cameroun est attendue par des étudiants, des diplomates, de l'Académie des droits humains,
23:31d'advocats et d'officiers du ministère cameroonien des affaires étrangères, ainsi que d'autres agences gouvernementales.
23:38La corruption reste un problème massif dans toutes les régions du monde.
23:44Il y a aussi une perturbante résurgence dans les changements inconstitutionnels qui, ou en revanche, clignotent sur le pouvoir.
23:55Les processus électoraux opaques sont à l'aube, comme sont les frustrations avec les institutions de l'État,
24:03qui sont considérées pour ne pas être représentatives ni efficaces.
24:07Les dégâts sur les manifestations pacifiques et les attaques sur les défenseurs des droits humains et les journalistes sont en train de grandir,
24:15en particulier dans le contexte des élections, tout contre la couverture de l'impunité virtuelle.
24:22La corrélation et la posture géopolitique et, franchement, trop beaucoup de bataille et pas assez de construction de paix,
24:32comme si le droit fondamental à la paix était oublié.
24:35C'est en effet une picture grise du monde d'aujourd'hui.
24:39Le haut-commissionnaire des droits humains des Etats-Unis identifie le discours de la haine, la corruption et les guerres
24:47comme une force pour l'abuse des droits humains au monde entier.
24:52Mais je pense qu'on peut et qu'il faut tourner les choses, et qu'on a les outils à notre disposition,
25:00en commençant par les principes fondamentaux et les valeurs qui sous-estiment notre système international,
25:06y compris et particulièrement les droits humains.
25:10Nous devons réclamer les droits humains comme un outil de résolution des problèmes
25:14pour des sociétés plus paisibles, plus sustainables et plus égales.
25:19Et aujourd'hui, j'aimerais toucher sur trois domaines
25:23où les droits humains sont critiques pour résoudre certains de nos plus profonds défis.
25:28Les régions de Cameroun, comme le nord-ouest, le sud-ouest et la région du nord-étranger,
25:36ont été vues récemment comme des zones avec un haut risque de violations des droits humains dans le pays,
25:44avec la présence de joueurs armés non-états.
25:48Il y a une mythe que se concentrer sur les droits humains dans le contexte de la médiation et de la paix
25:54peut être un obstacle à ces procédés.
25:59L'emphasis des violations des normes légales et de la blâme des perpétrateurs
26:05peut être un moyen d'améliorer la volonté politique nécessaire pour que les accords de paix soient négociés et acceptés.
26:14Il est plus qu'à l'heure de mettre cette mythe à l'asile.
26:19A l'inverse, les droits humains nous aident à nous rapprocher de la paix.
26:25Les droits humains, en montant et en rapportant, y compris contemporanément,
26:30peuvent établir les faits au milieu de la guerre.
26:34L'information objective, la vérité et l'accord sur l'histoire commune sont essentiels si la paix doit être sustainable.
26:43Les droits humains aussi gardent le focus des procédés de paix sur les gens.
26:48Avec leur base dans la dignité de chaque être humain,
26:52les droits humains répondent à peut-être la seule partie la plus délicate de la construction de la paix,
26:58pour que tous puissent voir et comprendre complètement l'humanité de l'autre,
27:03dans trop de conflits aujourd'hui, qui sont malheureusement perdus.
27:08À l'époque où l'Office de l'Afrique Centrale et Régionale des Nations Unies marque 20 ans d'existence,
27:13le High Commissioner des Droits Humains des Nations Unies
27:17s'adresse au quartier de Bastogne, en Inde, pour l'inauguration de leur nouveau bureau général régional.
27:25Les droits humains signifient aussi l'accountabilité,
27:28qui peut prendre différentes formes, dépendant aussi des besoins des communautés concernées.
27:35Les piliers des procédés de justice transitionnelle, la vérité, la réconciliation,
27:39les garanties de la non-répétition et les réformes institutionnelles,
27:44implémentées par des moyens judiciaux et non-judiciaux,
27:48peuvent être adaptées à chaque contexte spécifiquement et constructivement,
27:53pour naviguer l'héritage douloureux des violations des droits humains.
27:58De plus, le framework des droits humains peut aider à concevoir une agenda de négociation qui inclut
28:03les droits humains et les droits de l'homme.
28:08Nous ne pouvons pas construire le framework social.
28:11Dans tant de situations autour du monde, les groupes de femmes n'ont pas été impliquées dans les procédés de paix
28:15et nous voyons les conséquences de cela.
28:18En s'assurant l'égalité pour tous, l'inclusion et la participation sont cruciaux
28:24pour gérer le passé pour avancer.
28:28Si l'on regarde en revanche les dernières décennies,
28:32les dernières années des accords de paix au cours des années 1990,
28:35de Dayton au Guatemala et au Cambodge,
28:38ont démontré l'importance de l'intégration des droits humains.
28:43En effet, le processus cambodgien a résulté dans l'établissement d'un bureau de droit humain.
28:49L'involvement de mon bureau dans les négociations en Colombie, par exemple,
28:54a aidé à mettre en place les accords de 2016 sur les droits humains
28:58et à résoudre des questions de longue durée,
29:01comme la discrimination et la violence contre les femmes,
29:04les peuples indigènes et les peuples d'origine africaine.
29:07Et nous avons assuré l'inclusion significative des voix des victimes, y compris des femmes.
29:14La cérémonie est attendue par les membres du cabinet,
29:18y compris le ministre pour les propriétés étatales, les surveillances et l'emploi, Henri Eyébé Ayissi.
29:24Le gouvernement est officiellement représenté à la cérémonie
29:26par le ministre délégué au ministre des Religions étrangères,
29:30en charge de la coopération avec la Communauté, Félix M'Bayou.
29:35Mais je pense qu'on peut et qu'il faut tourner les choses.
29:41Et nous avons en effet, comme je l'ai dit avant, les outils à notre disposition.
29:48J'aimerais féliciter cet institut pour avoir été sélectionné comme partenaire académique
29:53pour l'entraînement préparatoire du programme d'association indigène de l'Office des droits de l'homme français et des droits de l'homme,
30:02qui permettra effectivement d'advocater pour leurs droits
30:06et de contribuer à la développement socio-économique de leurs communautés.
30:11Promouvoir les droits humains et trouver notre chemin à travers nos défis mondiaux
30:17doit être rien de moins qu'un enjeu collectif.
30:20Tous les acteurs, les états, les institutions, la société civile, le secteur privé,
30:26les instituts comme celui-ci, les institutions internationales comme mon bureau,
30:32c'est dans tous nos intérêts de travailler vers et d'assurer une société égale, juste, sustainable et résiliente.
30:41L'inauguration du nouveau bureau régional de l'Afrique centrale
30:44de la commission nationale des droits humains de l'Union Nationale
30:48marque un autre point important pour la cimentation des efforts
30:52pour la promotion et l'accompagnement des droits humains à Cameroun.
30:57Une mission délicate.