WONCA contributions to the 78th World Health Assembly

WONCA was represented by CEO Dr Haris Lygidakis, President-elect Dr Viviana Martinez-Bianchi and WHO liaison Dr Maria Pilar Asteria Peña.

At the 78th World Health Assembly (May 2025) WONCA delivered four official statements and co-signed two constituency statements. Their full texts are reproduced here so readers can easily consult and share them. A PDF download link follows each statement.

Statement on Universal Health Coverage 

Universal Health Coverage can be achieved only by bringing the core values of primary health care to life – ensuring accessible, continuous, comprehensive, coordinated and person-centred care for all.

Family doctors are central to this vision. As doctors of people, not just diseases, they integrate prevention, treatment, rehabilitation and compassion throughout life. They tackle social determinants of health through inter-sector action, social prescribing and strong community and public-health engagement, including during crises.

WONCA urges Member States to invest in family doctors by training, supporting and retaining them. Strengthening family medicine is essential to building resilient, equitable and sustainable health systems, advancing UHC and delivering health for all.

Download the PDF

Statement on Mental Health and Social Connection 

Mental health is essential to Universal Health Coverage and must be addressed through strong primary-health-care systems.

Working in multidisciplinary teams, family doctors spot emerging mental-health concerns early, offer timely support and reduce long-term impacts. They help people through bereavement, job loss and migration – life events that test resilience. With older adults they address unwanted loneliness, a growing, silent epidemic with serious effects.

WONCA calls on Member States to invest in family doctors and to integrate mental-health care into primary care. This will cut inequalities and build healthier, more resilient communities.

Download the PDF

Statement on the Health and Care Workforce 

Resilient health systems place family doctors at the heart of primary-health-care teams. Working with nurses, social workers and others, they provide holistic, patient-centred care – from prevention and chronic-disease management to mental health and rehabilitation – guaranteeing universal access.

WONCA is developing a common, competency-based family-medicine curriculum across WHO regions, giving family doctors advanced skills in comprehensive care, tele-medicine and point-of-care diagnostics.

We urge WHO to support governments in formally recognising family medicine as a specialty and in promoting education, training and continuous professional development for effective inter-professional teamwork. Strengthening family medicine bridges gaps, reduces inequities and advances Universal Health Coverage.

Download the PDF

Statement on Climate Change and Health 

Environmental factors cause almost a quarter of global deaths. Climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss are speeding non-communicable diseases and threatening health security.

After the 2025 Global Health Summit, WONCA reaffirms that climate action is health action. Primary health care must lead climate adaptation and mitigation.

WONCA promotes sustainable prescribing, “One Minute for the Planet” conversations in daily consultations and low-carbon, climate-resilient clinical practice. Aligning healthy lifestyles with planetary health builds stronger, more resilient communities.

We urge WHO and policymakers to equip and train the primary-care workforce in climate-conscious care, foster cross-sector collaboration and fund research and innovation. A strong, climate-aware primary-care system protects people today and the planet tomorrow.

Download the PDF

Constituency Statement on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response 

The following non-State actors support this statement:

• Global Health Council (GHC)
• AMREF
• Association Africaine des Centrales d’Achats de Médicaments Essentiels (ACAME)
• European Association for Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion (EuroSafe)
• International Federation for Medical and Biological Engineering (IFMBE)
• International Federation of Healthcare Engineering
• International Federation on Ageing
• Pasteur Network
• PATH
• Save the Children
• The Royal Commonwealth Society for the Blind (Sightsavers)
• The Task Force for Global Health
• The Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance
• World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA)
• World Vision International

We support the draft agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response and urge Member States to adopt it and begin concrete implementation.

As the focus shifts to implementation, we urge Member States to:

• Prioritise marginalised and at-risk groups and ensure responses reach them, including children and older persons.
• Keep the agreement consistent with the International Health Regulations.
• Create inclusive governance with civil-society participation and gender parity.
• Work on pathogen access and benefit-sharing and One Health.
• Use existing institutions, platforms and funds to avoid duplication and achieve greater equity.
• Strengthen primary-health-care systems so they can spot and respond to emergencies quickly.
• Safeguard UHC and ensure uninterrupted supply of essential medicines, vaccines and safe water, sanitation and hygiene in crises.

Civil-society engagement and transparency are vital to public trust in health-emergency work.

Download the PDF

Constituency Statement on Non-Communicable Diseases 

This constituency statement is supported by the following eight non-State actors:

• The International Society of Nephrology (lead)
• The International Alliance of Patients’ Organizations (IAPO)
• The International Council for Commonality in Blood Banking Automation (ICCBBA)
• The International Diabetes Federation
• The International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis
• The World Hypertension League
• The World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA)
• The World Stroke Organization

These organisations are committed to tackling non-communicable diseases with a focus on circulatory health – cardiovascular disease, diabetes, kidney disease and chronic respiratory conditions. These diseases are leading killers and impose heavy economic burdens.

Despite shared, modifiable risk factors, these conditions are often under-diagnosed, under-treated and under-funded, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Ahead of the 2025 High-Level Meeting, circulatory health must be a political and funding priority.

We welcome the proposed WHO resolution on kidney health and its wider relevance to circulatory health. Cardiovascular disease, diabetes and kidney disease can be prevented and managed through integrated, cost-effective interventions.

We urge Member States to:

• Integrate prevention and early detection of circulatory conditions into UHC primary care.
• Guarantee equitable access to diagnostics, medicines and workforce training through primary care to improve multimorbidity management.
• Strengthen information systems across circulatory-health services.

We call on WHO to:

• Support integrated circulatory care using evidence-based approaches.
• Promote cross-sector co-ordination to tackle social and environmental determinants.

Download the PDF