Health Promotion Forum

Multisectoral collaboration, community engagement and societal dialogue as effective approaches for Urban Governance to improve Health and Well-being

Organised by the WHO AMRO - WHO EMRO - WHO AFRO - WHO SEARO - WHO HQ

Cities are at the forefront of the COVID-19 response, one of the most significant threats to health in recent history. Cities have learned valuable lessons in governance through COVID-19.  Can these lessons learnt be adapted and applied to other underlying causes of health inequity in urban areas?

At no point other time has the notion of well-being been so important to people living in crowded cities.  With lockdowns and rapidly changing protocols for safety, people have been looking for ways to not just survive or feel healthy – but to optimize family and community relationships in innovative ways that result in a sense of well-being.

In this session, we will listen to representatives from Khulna (Bangladesh); Tunis (Tunisia); Mexico (Mexico); Bogota (Colombia) and Douala (Cameron) talk about the importance of strategies to overcome siloes and fragmented approaches to governance, apathy and non-engagement and the lack of mechanisms for citizens participation in decision-making.

Supported by the Switzerland Social Development Fund, these cities will provide insight into how the Urban Governance and Well-Being is helping achieve greater speed in breaking down barriers to social integration as well as ideas on scaling up effective measures for health and well-being through social dialogue, multi-sectoral action and community engagement.