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PAHO NEWS: Press Releases, Job Vacancies, and Other
Information from the Pan American Health Organization
(PAHO) via the Canadian Society for International Health (CSIH)
http://www.csih.org; Technical Representative in Canada for PAHO
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Bolivia, Canada, Guyana elected to PAHO Executive
Committee
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Bolivia, Canada and Guyana were elected to the Pan American Health
Organization's Executive Committee at the hemispheric meeting of health
ministers held in San Juan, Puerto Rico last week. The three countries
replace Colombia, Panama and Paraguay, whose terms on the committee
expired at the closing of last week's meeting, the 41 Directing Council of
PAHO. Other committee members currently include Antigua and Barbuda,
Ecuador, and Mexico, whose terms expire in September 2000; and Cuba, the
United States of America and Nicaragua, whose terms end in 2001.
Dr. Carmen Feliciano de Melecio, Secretary of Health of Puerto Rico, was
elected President of the Pan American Health Organization's 41 Directing
Council session at the opening of the meeting last Monday. Canada and
Trinidad and Tobago were elected vice presidents and Mexico rapporteur by
the health ministers of the Americas, who attended to discuss a variety of
public health policy issues. Cuba was elected as President of the Pan
American Health Organization's Executive Committee.
The meeting serves to bring together the member nations of the
Organization, which includes all the Health Ministers from the hemisphere,
from Canada to the tip of South America, to solve regional issues
affecting the health of all the people.
PAHO, an international public health organization formed in 1902, works
with all the countries of the Americas to improve the health and raise the
living standards of its peoples. Its annual meeting, called the Directing
Council, sets health policies for the Americas.
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PAHO Annual Report Details Health Situation in the
Americas
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The health situation in the Americas has continued to improve over the
past decade, but there are still inequalities within countries and among
population groups, according to the new Annual Report of Dr. George
Alleyne, Director of the Pan American Health Organization, presented to
Ministers of Health from throughout the Americas at PAHO Directing Council
Meetings in Puerto Rico last week.
"Narrowing inequalities and making the goal of 'health for all' a reality
in the medium term represents a challenge for the governments, WHO, PAHO,
and other agencies that are active in the health sector. The search for
equity in health is a vital concern for the Region of the Americas,
particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean, which display the most
inequitable income distribution in the world," he said.
For PAHO, the annual report said, "analyzing health inequities and setting
equitable policies hold special importance, in that these activities are
part of its mandate and they provide input for setting priorities for
technical cooperation. The improved health situation, economic recovery,
the strengthening of democracy and civil society, and subregional
integration initiatives are evidence both of the Region's legitimate
development aspirations and of the vast human capital that can be tapped
to successfully tackle the root causes of health inequalities."
Inequalities are evident in such measurements as different death rates of
children from pneumonia and other respiratory infections, the report said,
noting that "if all the countries had the same (respiratory infection)
mortality rate for children under 5 years old as the North American
subregion, there would be 93 percent fewer deaths among this age group
from this cause in the Region."
In Latin America and the Caribbean, infant mortality rates overall
decreased from 55.3 deaths per 1,000 live births to 35.5 deaths between
the 1980-1985 and 1995-2000 period, the report noted, but "even so, this
indicator shows a significant degree of inequality from one country to the
next." The rate among the highest income group of countries was only 7.9
deaths per 1,000 live births, some eight times lower than the rate for the
lowest income group of countries where 63 children died of every 1,000
born.
For further information contact: Daniel Epstein, tel (202) 974-3459, fax
(202) 974-3143, Office of Public Information, email [log in to unmask],
http://www.paho.org
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Rapid urbanization, environment, disasters among
challenges for Latin America and the Caribbean
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The Region of the Americas, especially Latin America and the Caribbean,
continues to undergo demographic and epidemiological changes
characteristic of societies in transition, said Dr. George A.O. Alleyne,
Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), in the
Organization's annual report, presented at the 41 Directing Council
meeting in Puerto Rico last week.
Between the first half of last decade and the second half of the nineties,
life expectancy at birth in the Region increased from 69.2 to 72.4 years.
For the period 1995-2000, life expectancy in North America is estimated at
76.9 years, while in Latin America and the Caribbean it is 69.8. In all
the continent, life expectancy of women is greater than that of men, the
report said. The report said all countries in the Americas showed an
"aging process" among the population, decline of fertility rates and rapid
urbanization of its populations.
As a result of various strategies, fertility declined in the Americas
between 1980 and 1995. Fertility rates declined an average of 19 percent,
although in some areas, such as Central America, the Andean Area and
Mexico, fertility rates are still double those of North America."
In 1980 the rural population of the Americas was 31 percent of the total,
ranging from 20 percent rural in the Southern Cone to a maximum of 58
percent rural population in Central America. By the year 2000, the rural
population will be 24 percent of the total population, with 15 percent in
the Southern Cone and a maximum of 58 percent in Central America, the
report noted. The report also estimated that in 1997 around 80 percent of
the population of the Americas had drinking water supplies, either with a
household connection or with easy access. These figures varied from 91
percent water access in North America to 67 percent in Central America.
The deficit in sanitation is still acute, the report noted. Although there
have been advances in coverage in the Region, only 10 percent of the
wastewater collected receives some type of treatment prior to its final
disposal. Other important environmental problems in the majority of the
countries of the Region are food contamination, adequate disposal of solid
wastes, precarious housing, and exposure to accidents and occupational
diseases.
The report also noted that many natural disasters including those caused
by El Nino and hurricanes Georges and Mitch, have produced loss of lives
and enormous material damages. "Rarely in the recent history of the
Americas have so many and such destructive natural disasters occurred in
the same year as they did in 1998. Despite the seriousness of the damage,
the affected countries responded exceptionally well, and the health sector
in particular played a leading role," the report noted.
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PAHO Vacancy Notice
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Post Title: Regional Advisor on Food and Nutrition; Level: P.4; Post
Number: 4.5808; Issue Date: 30 August 1999; Closing Date: 15 October 1999.
Duty Station: Washington, D.C.; Tenure: Two years, first year
probationary; Division/Program/Office: Health Promotion and Protection
(HPP) Food and Nutrition (HPN)
Salary Information: Basic Salary: $50,767 at single rate; Post Adjustment:
$9,240 at single rate
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS: Education: A postgraduate degree to at least the
master's level, in one of the health related sciences with specialized
training in nutrition and epidemiology. An M.D. with specialization in
nutrition or a Ph.D. in a nutritional science would be an asset.
Experience: At the national level: Seven years of professional experience
in the design, implementation and evaluation of nutrition intervention
programs at the local, regional and national level using the life cycle
and health promotion approach, of which four years involved managerial
responsibilities. At the international level: Two years of participation
in technical cooperation programs and activities involving the
identification and resolution of nutritional needs within the context of
health promotion. Languages: Very good knowledge of English and Spanish.
Skills: Responsibilities require managerial, analytical, problem solving
and technical writing skills for technical reports, position papers and
proposals, as well as the ability to mobilize resources. A good command
of modern information systems (software and applications) is essential.
For more information, contact the Pan American Health Organization / World
Health Organization, 525 Twenty-Third Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037
USA Fax (202) 974-3379 Vacancy Hotline: (202) 974-3333
http://www.paho.org
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This document is available, with full formatting and
accents, at http://www.csih.org/paho_ndx.html
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