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B6-0238/2006
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MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

29.3.2006

to wind up the debate on statements by the Council and Commission
pursuant to Rule 103(2) of the Rules of Procedure
by Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez, Glenys Kinnock and Margrietus van den Berg
on behalf of the PSE Group
on World Health Day

Postopek : 2006/2552(RSP)
Potek postopka na zasedanju
Potek postopka za dokument :  
B6-0238/2006
Predložena besedila :
B6-0238/2006
Sprejeta besedila :

B6‑0238/2006

European Parliament resolution on World Health Day

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to World Health Day on 7 April 2006, which will be devoted to healthcare workers,

–  having regard to the Health Workforce Decade (2006-2015), which will be launched on World Health Day,

–  having regard to the Commission’s Communication on an EU Strategy for Action on the Crisis in Human Resources for Health in Developing Countries, adopted on 12 December 2005,

–  having regard to the High-Level Forum on the Health MDGs held in Abuja in December 2004, and to its conclusions,

–  having regard to the Millennium Development Goals, to the summit on progress towards the MDGs held in New York in September 2005, and to the latter’s conclusions,

–  having regard to the Development Policy Statement signed by the Commission, Council and Parliament in December 2005,

–  having regard to the World Bank report on healthcare ‘Reaching the Poor: What Works, What Doesn’t and Why’, published on 7 December 2005,

–  having regard to Rule 103(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas there is a chronic worldwide shortage of health workers, with 75 countries having fewer than 2.5 health workers per 1,000, which is considered the minimum needed to deliver basic health services,

B.  whereas this chronic shortage is a result of underinvestment in health sectors and in the education of key health workers in both the developed and the developing world,

C.  whereas the increased need for health workers in developed countries with ageing populations has attracted doctors and nurses from developing countries in particular, exacerbating the existing shortage of health workers in these countries,

D.  whereas both donor and recipient countries have signed up to the Millennium Development Goals, three of which are directly related to health: reducing child mortality, improving maternal health and tackling HIV/AIDS and other diseases,

E.  whereas the European Parliament has repeatedly called on the European Commission to ensure that 20% of all development funds are spent on basic health and basic education, and 35% of development funds on social spending in general,

F.  whereas recent World Bank research suggests that spending on healthcare often does not reach the poorest in society, with the richest 20% of the population in the 20 countries surveyed receiving the same subsidised assistance as the poorest 20%,

1.  Welcomes the Commission Communication of December 2005 on a Strategy for Action on the Crisis in Human Resources for Health in Developing Countries, fully supporting its assertion that ‘MDG progress will be difficult to achieve without increased investment in the health workforce’, as well as its clear commitment to working in partnership with developing countries on development strategies;

2.  Criticises, nevertheless, the contradiction between the Commission’s stated commitment to improving healthcare in developing countries and achieving the MDGs and its appalling track record on spending development funds in the healthcare sector; underlines, for example, that in 2003 only 5.2% of the EDF was earmarked for health spending, and only 4% in 2002;

3.  Deplores the fact that the Commission intends to propose that only 6% of development funds within the new development cooperation instrument be dedicated to human and social development, covering not only healthcare, HIV/AIDS and sexual and reproductive health, but all other social development, including children, education and gender programmes;

4.  Calls on the Commission to revisit these figures and to adhere to Parliament’s longstanding demand that 35% of development funds be used for the social sector, with 20% of overall funds being used for basic healthcare and basic education;

5.  Underlines that both donor and recipient countries signed up to the Millennium Development Goals, and that donor countries calling for funds to be spent on basic healthcare does not undermine the principle of country ownership; calls on the Commission and developing countries to work together to ensure that these spending targets are achieved;

6.  Calls on the Commission and Member States to implement fully the Coherence for Development Policy they signed up to in the Development Policy Statement by ensuring that migration policies do not work to the detriment of developing countries by actively seeking key health workers from the poorest nations;

7.  Underlines, nevertheless, that the best way of combating the ‘brain drain’ in the health sector is to provide career incentives for key health workers to stay in their home country; calls on the Commission, Member States and the governments of developing countries to prioritise funding for health workers’ salaries and to invest in training of key health workers;

8.  Insists that the Commission and Member States do their utmost to ensure that healthcare funds reach the poorest in developing countries; highlights the urgent need for access to healthcare in rural and remote areas;

9.  Calls on the Commission and Member States to develop partnerships with hospitals in developing countries and to encourage cooperation via video conferencing, which can enable relatively small and remote hospitals to benefit from high-level expertise and guidance from other hospitals or countries;

10.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Member State Heads of Government, the Heads of Government of all developing countries, and Dr Lee Jong-wook, Secretary-General of the World Health Organisation.