During my tenure at the Department of Essential Medicines at the World Heath Organization (WHO), Health Action International (HAI) has been a very honest, trustworthy and reliable partner in many collaborative activities. The wide field experience and global perspectives of HAI have on many occasions been used by WHO to develop and strengthen its normative materials. For example, the well-known WHO/HAI methodology for measuring price and availability of essential medicines in low- and middle-income countries has become the global standard. HAI’s evidence-based and strongly public-health oriented analyses and recommendations are widely respected and used by WHO Expert Committees; and HAI’s lobbying activities in global fora such as the annual World Health Assembly have always supported and strengthened the public health position of WHO’s essential medicines programme.