The General Secretariat of the League of Arab States—Social Affairs Sector (Population Policies Department / Technical Secretariat of the Arab Council for Population and Development)—convened a high-level side event entitled: "Promoting Population Health through the 'Health in All Policies' Approach in the Arab Region." The event was held on 10 April at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on the margins of the 58th Session of the United Nations Commission on Population and Development.
The event was organised in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy and Planning of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), pursuant to Resolution 9 adopted by the Arab Council for Population and Development during its sixth ordinary session, held on 25 November 2024.
The high-level side event sought to shed light on the Health in All Policies (HiAP) approach, which aims to systematically incorporate health considerations into policymaking across all sectors in order to enhance population health and reduce health disparities. It featured a presentation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's pioneering experience in establishing the Health in All Policies Ministerial Committee, and included discussions on the imperative of integrating health into national policy agendas—particularly in times of crisis—while strengthening the resilience of health systems.
The agenda also addressed the Arab Strategy for a Health-Friendly Budget and fostered dialogue among regional stakeholders to promote the exchange of best practices and policy innovations that can be adopted and scaled across the Arab region.
His Excellency Ambassador Maged Abdel Fattah, head of the Permanent Mission of the League of Arab States to the United Nations, affirmed that health challenges have grown increasingly complex in today's world. He said that health is not merely the absence of disease, but rather a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being—and an inherent human right. Yet, this right remains under severe threat in many parts of the world, particularly in countries afflicted by war and instability, where health systems have collapsed and essential services are lacking.
His Excellency affirmed the significant influence of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action, which profoundly shaped national policies and programmes, especially those related to health and reproductive health care. This legacy is further reflected in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly in Goal 3, which seeks to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all. However, despite the progress achieved, the world—and the Arab region in particular—continues to grapple with mounting challenges to population health, exacerbated by pandemics, conflicts, and protracted crises.
He stressed that such challenges cannot be tackled by the health sector in isolation. Rather, they demand coordinated, multisectoral engagement involving a broad array of governmental actors whose mandates touch on health determinants—including education, food security, urban planning, housing, and environmental sustainability.
In his address, His Excellency the Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations echoed these sentiments, stating that the Kingdom views health not as an isolated sector, but as a national priority that intersects comprehensively with other critical sectors such as education, housing, transportation, the environment, and the economy. Health, he noted, is not only a consequence of development but a key enabler of it.
His Excellency further highlighted that the Kingdom has institutionalised the "Health in All Policies" approach through the establishment of a dedicated Ministerial Committee. This initiative reflects a high-level political commitment to integrating health considerations across all dimensions of public policymaking, thereby advancing sustainable and inclusive development outcomes.
