Seventy-second World Health Assembly

20-28 May 

Seventy-second World Health Assembly

The 72nd annual World Health Assembly will take place from 20 to 28 May 2019 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. It will be attended by nearly 4000 delegates from WHO’s 194 Member States and partner organizations. The Health Assembly is WHO’s highest decision-making body, setting out the Organization’s policy and approving its budget.

The general theme of this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) is "Universal health coverage: leaving no-one behind".

The Assembly will be webcast live, including the plenary sessions and the deliberations in Committees A and B. WHO will send and post daily press releases, detailing decisions taken at the Health Assembly.

Media contacts

Ms Fadéla CHAIB | +41 79 475 5556 | chaibf@who.int

Mr Tarik JAŠAREVIC | +41 79 367 6214 | jasarevict@who.int

Mr Christian LINDMEIER | +41 79 500 6552 | lindmeierch@who.int

Dr Margaret HARRIS | +41 79 290 6688 | harrism@who.int

Sunday 19 May 

Walk the Talk: The Health for All Challenge 2019

The second “Walk the Talk: The Health for All Challenge” event will be held on Sunday 19 May 2019 in Geneva.

To kick off the work of the Assembly, WHO is organizing a second Walk the Talk: The Health for All Challenge 2019, starting 9.30am at Place des Nations on 19 May.

The Challenge is a celebration of the importance of health and a recognition of the vital role that the city of Geneva plays as a hub for global health.

The First Lady of Kenya, H.E. Mrs Margaret Kenyatta, will be the special guest at this event and she will be joined by other champions of sports and health including: champion runner Tadesse Abraham; champion marathon runner Mary Keitany; and mental health advocate Cynthia Germanotta (co-founder of Born This Way Foundation with her daughter, Lady Gaga).

Monday 20 May

World Health Assembly Opens

The Health Assembly will open with a high-level segment, which will include an address by WHO Director General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, at around 12 noon. The entire event will be webcast. A number of Health Leader Awards will be announced during the morning and a photo opportunity will be held outside the Salle des Assemblées at the end of the high-level segment.

Live webcast

The Assembly will be webcast live, including the plenary sessions and the deliberations in Committees A and B.

Press briefings

• 21 May | 10h30 | Salle de presse III
• 22 May | 10h30 | Salle de presse I
• 23 May | 10h30 | Salle de presse I
• 24 May | 10h30 |  Salle de presse III
• 27 May | 10H30 | Salle de presse I

On Tuesday 28 May, a closing press conference may be organized. This and any additional briefings will be announced by email. 

The Agenda

Click here for the agenda and other documentation in the 6 official languages. 

Access to meetings

Committee A and Committee B and the Assembly Hall are open to media and can be covered from specially-designated press areas. Please consult the Journal for information on whether other meetings are open or closed. To avoid access issues, journalists must wear their accreditation badges visibly.

The Journal

A Daily Journal will be posted on the WHO website every morning from 20 May.  

A preliminary Journal is available here.  

Daily news releases

A daily news release, summarizing the key decisions taken by the Health Assembly will be distributed via email and posted here.
 

Technical Briefings

• Global Action Plan for Healthy Lives and Well-being for All
• Emerging technologies
• Universal health coverage
• Investing in jobs
• Green, sustainable climate-resilient health care facilities
• Promoting local production of medicines and other health technologies
• Towards healthier populations

 Details of these briefings are on page 7

Side events

Some side events will be held at the Palais des Nations but others will be held offsite. A list of side events can be found here.

Content board

You can access our photos, videos and other content during #WHA72 here.

Follow us

Twitter with hashtag #WHA72

WHA-related Live shows will be broadcast via WHO’s Facebook page.

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