| European Parliament: Health must be priority in Africa |
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Coming shortly after a report my Michael Cashman MEP which revealed that the EU is currently €20 million short of meeting its spending commitments for development, Ms. De Keyser’s report shows how the EU is failing to provide the funds needed to meet the Millennium Development Goals on health. “In 2006, international aid covered 0.25 to 0.5% of health budgets in this region. Yet, even with this level of aid, the problem remains vast,” concludes Ms. De Keyser in her report. She continues: “First of all, because the global financial crisis does not encourage European countries to keep their promises, in other words to give at least 0.7% of GDP in development assistance by 2010. Secondly, because traditionally health is not a priority. For example, aid for health amounts to only half of the amount allocated to education. While the importance of this latter sector should not be underestimated, this disparity tells its own story. Finally, because the problem still remains of how funding is to be targeted.” Read the report in full here (pdf). Source:  |
On Tuesday 13 July, the European Parliament’s Development Committee discussed the findings of Belgian Socialist MEP Veronique De Keyser’s report on health care systems in sub-Saharan Africa. De Keyser, who has worked as a nurse in Africa, urged the EU to make health a greater priority in its development cooperation on the continent, saying: “It's not a question of ideology but of saving human lives.”
