2016 Annual Report & Financial Statements | 5 April, 2017 | Download PDF
About Health Action International
Health Action International (HAI) is the only independent, non-profit, civil society organisation entirely dedicated to improving access to medicines and the rational use of medicines. As a
Dutch-registered ‘stichting’ (foundation) established in 1981, our staff, members and network partners in over 70 countries around the world conduct research and advocacy to ensure all people receive the right medicine, in the right dose, for the right amount of time, at a price they can afford. In addition to being in ‘official relations’ with the World Health Organization, HAI is a member of the European Medicines Agency’s ‘Patients and Consumers Working Party’.
Activities and Achievements
Our 2016 work focused on five programme areas: the Health Systems Advocacy Partnership, European Projects, Snakebite, Access to Insulin, and Medicine Prices. In addition to this programme work, which is described below, we made significant contributions to medicines policy discussions at the global level. This included interventions and side events on pharmaceutical research and development (R&D) and other areas at the 69th World Health Assembly in May and both written and in-person submissions to the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines, which published its final report in September. HAI was also a member of The Lancet Commission on Essential Medicines, which released its report in November.
a) Health Systems Advocacy Partnership
HAI is a proud member of the Health Systems Advocacy (HSA) Partnership with Amref Health Africa, the African Centre for Global Health and Social Transformation, Wemos and the Dutch Ministry for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation. The goal of the five-year programme, which officially launched at the beginning of 2016, is to support civil society organisations in Kenya, Uganda and Zambia in advocating for sound government policies that strengthen health systems and, in turn, improve the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) of citizens.
Building an Evidence Base on Access to Sexual and Reproductive Health Commodities
Because robust data is key to developing sound health policy, HAI is contributing its research expertise to the HSA Partnership by measuring access to SRH commodities in Kenya, Zambia and Uganda.