Aiming to make universal access and quality healthcare a reality across the globe, the partnership between World Health Organization and ITU is a working example of the way in which SDGs 3 and 17 can be achieved. With innovation and collaboration at the core of their work, ITU and WHO have fostered a valuable, long standing partnership which has allowed them to become trusted international authorities for Digital Health.
Having affirmed the potential of information and communication technologies (ICTs) for health and the importance of human centered design, over a decade ago the two organizations joined forces towards a shared goal of harnessing digital innovation, ICT applications and mobile (mHealth) solutions to improve well-being of people and the delivery of health services around the world.
Particularly in the context of health related Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3), digital solutions present tremendous benefits for countries in expanding health coverage to all, even in remote areas, by 2030. ITU and WHO’s focus is to assist countries adopt proven solutions, scale implementation efforts and evaluate impact of digital health initiatives at the national level – with special emphasis on Low-Middle Income Countries (LMIC). The success of joint programmes and strategy implementation has led to the intensification and further expansion of ITU and WHO’s strategic partnership – which was recognized with a strengthened mandate, and the signing of a new Collaboration Agreement in 2018.
Current key areas of collaboration between ITU and WHO include: (i) mHealth for noncommunicable diseases – notably the BeHe@lthy BeMobile initiative, (ii) Digital Health Africa Initiative, (iii) EU mHealth Innovation and Knowledge Hub, (iv) Digital Health Strategy – specifically using National E-Health Strategy Toolkit (2012), and (v) Artificial Intelligence for Health.
For details, see Area of collaboration: Digital Health.
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