IFMSA Pre-World Health Assembly Report 2019

IFMSA Imprint PreWorld Health Assembly Organizing Committee Isaac Florence Amro Aglan Charlotte O’Leary Caitlin Pley Jorge Félix Cardoso Sanne de Wit Paula Reges Irene Cattacin Michelle Houde

Layout Design Muthia Huda

The

International

Federation

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Medical

Students’

Associations (IFMSA) is a non-profit, non-governmental organization representing associations of medical students worldwide. IFMSA was founded in 1951 and currently maintains 136 National Member Organizations from 126 countries across six continents, representing a network of 1.3 million medical students.

IFMSA envisions a world in which medical students unite for global health and are equipped with the knowledge, skills and values to take on health leadership roles locally and globally, so to shape a sustainable and healthy future.

IFMSA is recognized as a nongovernmental organization within the United Nations’ system and the World Health Organization; and works in collaboration with the World Medical Association.

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Contents 1

Welcome Message from the Organising Committee Chair

2 Meet the Organising Committee 3 Acknowledgements & Sponsors 8 Intro to PreWHA 9 Academic Programme 10 PreWHA Open Session 11 Academic Pillar Reports 15 Visibility and Social Media 17 Data Evaluation and Outcomes 25 Finances

Welcome Message from the Organising Committee Chair Dear Reader, IFMSA’s Pre World Health Assembly, or PreWHA, has become quite famous over the years. Since 2012 we are lucky to have become an event that many WHA-goers are delighted to be invited to, with many returning faces giving talks each year. This is due to the Federation’s hard work at successive WHAs and the culture of sharing experience and wisdom with some of the next generation of global health advocates, diplomats and leaders that so many in the global health field have adopted.

Our PreWHA this year had 60 participants from 31 countries, and speakers from across the world and many different disciplines and organisations. The programme - following a new format devised by the IFMSA Liaison Officer to the WHO (LWHO), Charlotte O’Leary - was put together by our three Academic Coordinators and Programme Coordinator to best convey the skills and knowledge required to be successful at the World Health Assembly, all following the three pillars of the IFMSA overarching Global Priorities: Universal Health Coverage, Global Health Education, and Meaningful Youth Participation. You can read more about these three pillars and their sessions in the report.

As ever, the PreWHA leads in our commitment to being environmentally friendly wherever possible. Although there were participants from across the world, reductions in the use of all materials, packaging and food was centrepiece in our considerations of procurement.

There are many people and organisations to thank and congratulate for their commitment, tireless work and kindness in putting on this year’s PreWHA. Many of them are listed later in this report along with information about their contributions.

As Chair I cannot begin to express my gratitude and admiration for this team who organised PreWHA. They have been committed, hard working, kind and always positive and smiling despite being exhausted, making tough decisions and giving up many hundreds of hours for this project.

In particular, Charlotte O’Leary, the Programme Coordinator and IFMSA LWHO has been a force of nature. Charlotte has been part of the OC for the last three years and her mastery of the process reflected this. Patient, wise and hard-working beyond what should be expected of a full-time employee (let alone a full time student and IFMSA Official), this event would not have been half as successful without her.

Leading this team and meeting the contributors, speakers and participants of PreWHA has been the honour of an IFMSA career. My gratitude for everyone’s enthusiasm and engagement knows no bounds. I hope this introduction sets you in the right frame to appreciate the enormous amount of work and success achieved by my colleagues. Please enjoy reading it and consider being involved next year or in the future.

It really is a unique experience.

On behalf of the OC, Isaac Florence Chair of the Organising Committee

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Meet the Organising Committee

Isaac Florence Chair

Amro Aglan Vice Chair

Charlotte O’Leary LWHO and Programme Coordinator

Caitlin Pley Global Health Education Academic Coordinator

Jorge FĂŠlix Cardoso Universal Health Coverage Academic Coordinator

Sanne de Wit Meaningful Youth Participation Academic Coordinator

Paula Reges Finance Coordinator

Irene Cattacin Logistics Coordinator

Michelle Houde Social Media Coordinator

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Acknowledgements & Sponsors We would like to thank our partners, the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research, UHC2030, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the Global Health Centre of the Graduate Institute Geneva, the Swiss Medical Students’ Association (swimsa), the City of Geneva and the Geneva Youth Hostel for their continuous support to bring the PreWHA once again to a great success.

The Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research (the Alliance) works to improve the health of those in low- and middle-income countries by supporting the generation and use of evidence that strengthens health systems. As an international partnership hosted by the World Health Organisation, they work together with organisations around the world to: Provide a unique forum for the health policy and systems research community; Support institutional capacity for the conduct and uptake of health policy and systems research; Stimulate the generation of knowledge and innovations to nurture learning and resilience in health systems; and increase the demand for and use of knowledge for strengthening health systems.

With the support of The Alliance, we were able to launch the first ever Change-Maker Scholarship Program, which allowed four students from low and middle income countries to attend the PreWHA and WHA fully funded. We would like to thank the Alliance for their vision and support in getting this program off the ground. For any more information on the Change-Maker Scholarship Program, or to view the report from the program, please email lwho@ifmsa.org.

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UHC2030 is the global movement to strengthen health systems for universal health coverage (UHC).

UHC2030 provides a multi-stakeholder platform that promotes collaborative working at global and country levels on health systems strengthening. They advocate increased political commitment to UHC and facilitate accountability and knowledge sharing. Together, their partners and related initiatives nurture a shared global vision for health systems and UHC. They frame emerging priorities, identify bottlenecks and propose collective recommendations to accelerate progress towards UHC.

UNAIDS is the leading advocate for global action against HIV/AIDS. Its mission is to guide, strengthen and support worldwide efforts to turn the tide against the epidemic. Such efforts are aimed at: preventing the spread of HIV, providing care and support for those infected and affected by the disease, reducing the vulnerability of individuals and communities to HIV/AIDS and easing the socioeconomic and human impact of the epidemic.

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The Graduate Institute is an institution of research and higher education (Master and PhD). Selective and cosmopolitan, it is located in the heart of International Geneva and specialises in the study of the major global, international and transnational challenges facing the contemporary world. It also offers professional development programmes and expertise to international actors from the public, private and non-profit sectors. The Global Health Centre (GHC), established in spring 2008 at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, is unique in Europe as a research centre integrated into an institute of international relations and development. The Centre focuses on combining the practice and analysis of global health at the interface with foreign policy, trade and development. The GHC examines the characteristics and mechanisms of global health governance and multi-stakeholder governance for health at the beginning of the 21st century and engages in capacity building in global health diplomacy. It also builds partnerships with a wide range of actors at international, regional and national levels.

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We are extremely grateful for the support of the Geneva City Council, who, for the second time, generously allowed us the use of the beautiful Salle du Faubourg for our event. We truly appreciate their support of international youth activities in Geneva, and look forward to further partnership in the future.

Swimsa has been particularly helpful to us, with providing us support with venue documentation, as well as providing materials to our delegates such as text markers, measuring tapes and folders. Moreover, we would like to thank the Geneva local committee for their help in organising the social program and the scavenger hunt, it would not have been the same without them!

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Speakers We would like to thank all of our PreWHA speakers who gave up their time to support our learning. Your contributions were invaluable to our delegates, and will continue to inspire us for many years.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

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Dr Maria Neira, Director of Public Health and Determinants, World Health Organisation Helga Fogstad, Executive Director, Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health Dr Shannon Hader, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of Programmes, UNAIDS Dr Kabir Sheikh, Policy Advisor, Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research Dr Michaela Told, Executive Director Global Health Centre, Graduate Institute Dr Gerard Schmets, Chief Coordinator of the WHO Universal Health Coverage Joint Working Team, World Health Organisation Diah Saminarsih, Senior Advisor for Gender and Youth, World Health Organisation Dr Matthew Jowett, Senior Health Financing Specialist, World Health Organisation Dr Kent Renson, Senior Economist, World Bank Dr Susan Sparkes, Department of Health Systems Governance and Financing, World Health Organisation Dr Robert Yates, Senior Fellow & Director of the UHC Policy Forum, Chatham House Dr Naoko Yamamoto, Assistant Director-General for the Universal Health Coverage/Healthier Populations Division, World Health Organisation Rubén Pagés, Youth Programmes Coordinator, UNAIDS Dr Caline Mattar, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Global Health, Washington University Prof Aisha Holloway, Professor of Nursing Studies, University of Edinburgh Austin Liu, Analyst, Public Policy & Engagement, Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance Dr Diogo Martins, Senior Policy Officer, Global Policy Team, Wellcome Trust Dr Roopa Dhatt, Executive Director, Women in Global Health Dr Onyema Ajuebor, Technical Officer, Health Workforce Department WHO Christiane Wiskow, Health Sector Specialist, International Labour Organisation Devota Tweve, Youth Accountability Advocate, Restless Development Ayla Bouwman, Youth Delegate, Dutch Government Dr Michalina Drejza, Director of Research and Development, International Alliance for Family Planning

Intro to PreWHA IFMSA has been sending a delegation to the World Health Assembly for many decades, but in 2012 the Liaison Officer to the WHO and President of IFMSA decided that this event required specific and rigorous training to prepare delegates drawn from across the Federation. The PreWHA has evolved since its first edition 7 years ago but as discussed later in this report, its eighth iteration is the product of many years’ reflections and redesign. Nonetheless the ideals and foundations of the PreWHA remain the same, to train and equip the next generation of global health leaders and diplomats.

The PreWHA is in essence four and a half days of seminars and training sessions delivered by a range of experts and leaders in a wide array of global public health arenas. With long hours and a flurry of new experiences for all participants, this is an intense and exhausting few days made easier with regular short caffeination and hydration breaks, early morning sports and a social programme designed to encourage participants to get to bond as early as possible (the effects of which can be seen from year-round discussion and reminiscing in the infamous PreWHA chat whatsapp groups). This intensity is perfect preparation for the WHA, which itself is a remarkably exhausting marathon; you can read more about our time at the WHA this year in the WHA Report 2019 (please email lwho@ifmsa.org for a copy).

The PreWHA is seen as a model for youth engagement and capacity building in global health. The IFMSA has a strong passion for interprofessional learning and collaboration, and we are delighted to be able to host representatives of other student organisations and other non-IFMSA members each year, to engage the full diversity of youth working in global health. Embracing this multi-stakeholder engagement and interdisciplinary learning is a key strength of youth organisations, and we truly feel it is fundamental to meeting the health challenges of today.

After these few days we hope that the PreWHA has engaged and prepared all participants to be delegates at the WHA, trained how to approach and engage senior delegates, use social media to advocate for IFMSA’s policies and be brought up to speed on the latest in global health by world renowned experts.

On the banks of Lake Geneva, in this famous city for internationalism, with excellent Swiss hospitality and surrounded by the best and brightest, the PreWHA really is a world class event.

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Academic Programme Now in its eighth iteration, the PreWHA programme was redesigned this year, moving away from the previous “streams” system and instead having three integrated academic pillars and introducing Advocacy Working Groups (AWGs) that allowed delegates to focus on more specific areas of global health interest. are engaged before the PreWHA by the coordinators (Liaison Officers, PreWHA OC members and selected volunteers).

The AWGs were coordinated by IFMSA Liaison Officers, PreWHA OC members and knowledgeable delegates. The six AWGs were: UHC, Non-Communicable Diseases & Environment, Communicable Diseases, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in UHC, Refugees’ and Migrants’ Health and Governance & Access to Medicines. The AWGs were well received by participants, allowing them more time to talk about topics and WHA agenda items that particularly interested them with their peers. This is an area of the programme which has enormous potential to be developed, refined and improved upon.

Each year the programme has the difficult task of predicting the key points of the WHA agenda that will be focused upon in the PreWHA. The Academic Coordinators did an excellent job in combining the didactic, lecture-based side of the programme with the participatory, soft-skills side of the programme to mould around the heavy points of the WHA agenda. Later in this report you will see the metrics gathered on how participants felt about how well prepared they were for the WHA.

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PreWHA Open Session On Saturday 18th May, IFMSA opened the PreWHA workshop to other youth. There were around 120 young people in attendance, from a variety of backgrounds, including a group of youth from Nursing Now and many other youth organisations. This event was the first in a series of youth activities in the margins of the WHA, designed to connect and inspire young global health advocates at this important event.

The afternoon had two sessions. Firstly, a group-discussion based session called ‘Paving our way, to raise our voice’ allowed participants to explore notions of meaningful youth participation and highlight key priorities for governments, young people and WHO in achieving it. This session was particularly inspiring for young people that had not experienced a lot of peer-lead discussion-based training before, and it allowed everyone to gain different perspectives on contentious issues in youth engagement.

The second session was called ‘Careers in Global Health’ and gave participants an opportunity to reflect on their own future career plans, and how they can make a difference in the field of global health. We had four experts speakers who shared their experiences and career paths in global health, Prof Aisha Holloway (Nursing Now and University of Edinburgh), Mr Austin Liu (Gavi), Dr Caline Mattar (Washington University and World Medical Association), Dr Diogo Martins (Wellcome Trust). The whole afternoon was a fantastic way for youth to meet each other and get prepared for the upcoming WHA. To learn more about the Youth Constituency at WHA, please email lwho@ifmsa.org.

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Academic Pillar Reports Universal Health Coverage Universal Health Coverage is one of the utmost priorities for the global health community, and IFMSA as well. 2019 is a very important year for this goal, considering the world will witness the first High-Level Meeting on the topic. Due to that milestone, UHC featured directly and indirectly in most of WHA’s agenda items, and thus it is necessary for a good advocacy effort to educate and instruct our delegates both in UHC as a topic and in IFMSA’s priorities regarding UHC. If we look beyond 2019, this academic pillar does not lose its importance. IFMSA has an impressive track-record in UHC advocacy, organising the Human Resources for Health (HRH) Youth Forum in Dublin and the HRH Youth Call to Action, participating in UHC Forum in Tokyo, actively engaging with UHC2030, and launching the Hurghada Youth Call to Action on UHC after March Meeting 2018 in Egypt. Already an overarching concept in IFMSA’s Global Priorities 2018-2019, UHC will probably continue to be a priority, and thus capacity-building and awareness-raising efforts among IFMSA is a positive investment.

This PreWHA Academic Pillar had the following objectives: 1. Provide “hard” skills that allow delegates to take part in discussions in an evidence-based, critical manner 2. Detail the concept of Universal Health Coverage, including frequently overlooked aspects of UHC, such as Social, Commercial and Political Determinants of Health, discrimination in accessing healthcare, Health in All Policies approach 3. Give an overview of how the world is faring on UHC and what is still needed to achieve Health for All by 2030 4. Identify useful tools, including frameworks, documents and stakeholders, for future work on UHC The UHC programme consisted of the following: • Session What the Health is UHC?, by Dr Gerard Schmets. An overview of what Universal Health Coverage means, with discussions on what is covered, who is covered and how. Detailed discussion on primary healthcare, out-of-pocket payments and migrants’ health.

• Session Health beyond Healthcare, by Rubén Pagés. An informal conversation about political struggles and how they affect health, with a special focus on HIV/AIDS policies and discrimination

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• • •

Session Health Systems: an Introduction, by Dr Matthew Jowett. A lecture-like session on health systems models and financing.

Session No pay, no gain, by Dr Kent Renson and Dr Susan Sparkes. A workshop that combined theoretical knowledge about health systems financing with stakeholder analysis and mapping.

Session How is the World faring on UHC?, by Dr Robert Yates and Dr Naoko Yamamoto. Good and bad examples of progress on UHC around the world, combined with an analysis of how politics influences health and health coverage.

Meaningful Youth Participation Meaningful Youth Participation is emerging as a hot topic, with initiatives popping up everywhere, such as the first ever Advisor on Gender and Youth within the WHO and the UN Youth Strategy. For IFMSA it has been a topic we have long contributed to and since the development of the Global Priorities has been an overarching concept to our work. However, big questions remain: Now that youth is on the agenda of these big institutions, how do we ensure meaningful engagement? What does that even look like? How do we counter well-persisted arguments that we have less to bring to the table, because we do not have years of experience? Prerequisites to youth making a meaningful contribution is that we know the system, where our contributions have most impact, and that we know our topics. The WHA provides an ample opportunity to show once again that we are not just young people wanting to shout our opinions, but more than that are valuable stakeholders with original input and contributions to bring to the table.

The PreWHA Meaningful Youth Participation Academic Pillar aimed to reach the following objectives: 1. Participants have proper knowledge about Global Health Governance and the role of youth and civil society; 2. Participants are equipped with the needed knowledge and skills of Global Health Advocacy to enter the WHA and make a meaningful contribution; 3. Participants will search to answer the questions what meaningful youth engagement should look like, what we can do ourselves and what we need others to do to ensure it The MYP programme consisted of the following: • An introduction to Global Health Governance by Dr Michaela Told from the Graduate Institute of Geneva, introducing participants to the term, platforms, stakeholders and biggest issues being discussed.

• A session on Health in the Sustainable Development Goals era in which participants unveiled interlinkages between several SDGs and how every SDG can contribute towards better health.

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•

•

•

To discover the concept, good practices, barriers and ways to go within Meaningful Youth Participation a panel was held with Youth Champions with an introduction to WHOs work in the area by Diah Saminarsih as the WHO Senior Advisor on Gender and Youth.

In order to give participants an experience on global health governance in action a Public Health Emergency Simulation with an unknown global infectious disease outbreak was led by the MYP Academic Coordinator, Sanne de Wit. Last, during our Open Sessions Paving our Way, to Raise our voices was held facilitating a discussion with all youth present resulting in collective priorities to call for during the coming WHA, with a closing remark from Diah Saminarsih.

Global Health Education The Global Health Education stream of the programme was focused on the development of a number of key soft skills. The sessions were designed to equip delegates with skills that would be useful both in the immediate term, during the World Health Assembly, and in the longer term because of their applicability to a number of other professional settings.

The PreWHA Global Health Education pillar had the following objectives: 1. Gain a greater understanding of the diversity (multidisciplinary and multisectoral) of careers in global health and get advice from global health professionals at various stages of their career 2. Develop a more balanced understanding of global health work, including its rewards and benefits, but also challenges and frustrations 3. Become confident using social media to effectively share insight about global health topics 4. Practise public speaking in front of a group 5. Practise reading statements, simulating the World Health Assembly 6. Practise approaching and networking with stakeholders 7. Learn how to analyse policies in a systematic way 8. Identify the key stakeholders in global health Global Health Education sessions in the programme included: • Dr Caline Mattar delivered a very insightful and practical session on Policy Analysis & Stakeholders on the second day of the programme. Dr Mattar described a number of techniques used to analyse health policies and map important stakeholders on an issue, as well as demonstrating the importance of these skills in the context of the World Health Assembly.

• On the first day of the programme, Michelle Houde delivered a workshop on the use of Social Media

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•

•

•

for Advocacy, particularly Twitter and Instagram, to captivate digital audiences and have a wide reach during events like the World Health Assembly. The delegates reflected on their own use of social media for advocacy purposes and shared tips and past experiences.

Michelle Houde led an incredible Public Speaking workshop, which saw delegates exploring the various techniques used by effective public speakers to have a meaningful impact on their audience.

Further, this workshop allowed delegates to practise reading their WHA statements and gain valuable feedback from their peers.

Caitlin Pley led an Approaching & Networking workshop, which allowed the delegates to practise speaking to Member State delegates in a variety of simulated scenarios, designed to replicate common conversations between IFMSA delegates and Member States at the World Health Assembly.

Our Careers in Global Health panel was the final session of the PreWHA programme and took place during the Open Session. The panel included Dr Caline Mattar, Dr Diogo Martins, Prof Aisha Holloway and Austin Liu and was moderated by Caitlin Pley. Delegates asked insightful and personal questions that captivated the audience and left everyone with a better understanding of the diversity of global health careers.

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Visibility and Social Media Social Media training A session on social media was given during IFMSA’s Youth PreWHA Workshop, by the Public Relations & Social Media Coordinator, Michelle Houde. A general introduction, an overview of how and when to use each platform and a list of the important # and @ were presented. *Goal: Give the delegation the environment to discuss social media strategy and exchange tips and tricks. Brief the delegates on Youth Social Media Strategy for WHA72 to have uniform posts and a stronger social media presence.

Social Media attention of PreWHA 2019 IFMSA paired up with other youth organisations (including the International Veterinary Students Association, the International Pharmaceutical Students Federation, the International Pharmaceutical Federation Young Pharmacists Group and the World Congress of Chiropractic Students) to develop a social media strategy for youth at the WHA. We, together, chose our two official hashtags: #Youth4Health and #WHA72. The other hashtags used were #yWHA72, #WalkTheTalk, #YouthWalk, #YouthTalk, #Walk4ThePlanet and #PreWHA. In this way, our posts reached more people and shared a clear message: youth are present at the WHA and are advocating for health. All young people attending got informed of the strategy and used the hashtags.

IFMSA got active on Twitter every day of the PreWHA and of the WHA, sharing pictures and quotes of speakers, members of our delegation, IFMSA’s Liaison Officers, other non-state actors, Member States and members of WHO’s staff. An exact number of 150 tweets and retweets were made on IFMSA’s Twitter account during the month of May, related to PreWHA and WHA, reaching out to hundreds of people including WHO’s Director-General Dr Tedros.

Instagram and Facebook stories were uploaded everyday of the PreWHA and WHA. Pictures of the speakers, inspiring quotes, and updates on IFMSA’s delegation are examples of our work. Official posts were also published about IFMSA’s delegation and PreWHA’s financial partners.

Three blog posts were published: one about the PreWHA and the advocacy plan for WHA, another about IFMSA’s external work during WHA, and a last one on delegates’ general experience.

A 5-minute video was created with IFMSA delegates of all five continents to explain the meaning and the content of PreWHA workshops, as well as some highlights of participants. It was shared on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

IFMSA gave a special consideration to representativity of gender and region for publications, blogs and videos, as it is a priority for our Federation.

Advocacy at Walk the Talk The Walk the Talk is the WHO’s annual fun run, and this was held on Sunday 19th May. It gathers people from international and local Geneva for a day of physical activity and activities celebrating and promoting health. The Youth Walk the Talk: The Health for All Challenge aimed to show the contribution of youth

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in promoting healthy living and to raise awareness on the work and goals of the WHO and other global health agencies. Youth gathered together and engaged in a number of activities, including raising awareness for planetary health through posters and social media. A group of youth led by Viktoria Gastens from IPSF performed a dance on stage during the warmup activities, highlighting the importance of Sustainable Development Goals and UHC. A live video was recorded on IFMSA’s Facebook page during Walk The Talk, to show the atmosphere of the event. We also explained why we were walking for climate change and health and how physical activity is closely linked with the health of our planet. *Goal: involve members who were not present and spread our message through a different platform, to reach a different audience.

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Data Evaluation and Outcomes The Organising Committee sent two impact assessment surveys to the PreWHA participants before the start of the PreWHA and after the end of the WHA, to assess the experience gained during the PreWHA and the progress achieved in their knowledge and advocacy skills. Overall evaluation showed that participating in the PreWHA allowed our participants to understand the different roles of WHO, Member States and NGOs attending the WHA. In addition, it gave them more tools to be able to advocate with their Member States’ representatives during the event. The following diagrams are showing the responses received from the PreWHA participants before (41 responses) and after the event (24 responses).

Participants at the PreWHA come from different professional backgrounds as follows:

1. I am generally knowledgeable about the World Health Organisation?

1 = Strongly disagree | 2 = Disagree | 3 = Neutral | 4 = Agree | 5 = Strongly agree Pre-event:

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Post-event:

2. I am generally knowledgeable about the World Health Assembly?

1 = Strongly disagree | 2 = Disagree | 3 = Neutral | 4 = Agree | 5 = Strongly agree Pre-event:

Post-event:

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3. I am competent to carry out advocacy tasks at the upcoming World Health Assembly?

1 = Strongly disagree | 2 = Disagree | 3 = Neutral | 4 = Agree | 5 = Strongly agree Pre-event:

Post-event:

4. I understand the roles and interests of each of the following?

Pre-event:

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Post-event:

5. I feel confident approaching government officials and Member State representatives?

1 = Strongly disagree | 2 = Disagree | 3 = Neutral | 4 = Agree | 5 = Strongly agree Pre-event:

Post-event:

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6. I am knowledgeable about the following advocacy tools: Pre-event:

Post-event:

PreWHA participants were distributed among Advocacy Working Groups as following:

7. I am knowledgeable about the topic of my Advocacy Working Group (AWG)?

1 = Strongly disagree | 2 = Disagree | 3 = Neutral | 4 = Agree | 5 = Strongly agree Pre-event:

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Post-event:

8. I feel confident discussing the topic of my Advocacy Working Group with each of the following?

Pre-event:

Post-event:

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9. I am competent to work with advocacy in other areas including health issues related to my country or my local community?

1 = Strongly disagree | 2 = Disagree | 3 = Neutral | 4 = Agree | 5 = Strongly agree Pre-event:

Post-event:

10. I am knowledgeable about the current global health education opportunities and global health careers?

1 = Strongly disagree | 2 = Disagree | 3 = Neutral | 4 = Agree | 5 = Strongly agree Pre-event:

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Post-event:

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Finances Finances remain one of the greatest challenges of the PreWHA organisation.

Conciliating Geneva’s high price of living with the sustainability aimed for the event is a tough mission.

We recognise how financial barriers are critical for allowing students to attend external meetings, and this is mostly where we focused our efforts: reducing costs and registration fees.

In collaboration with The Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research, an international partnership hosted at the World Health Organisation, we were able to provide the first ever Change-Maker Scholarship Program for the WHA and the IFMSA Youth PreWHA for 4 students, including flights to and from their home city to Geneva, visa payments, registration for the PreWHA, full accommodation, food and living expenses throughout the stay.

Furthermore, even with the increased room prices, we are proud to have kept the registration fees comparatively low this year and will strive to ensure this continues into the future.

Organising an eco-friendly event continues to be one of our priorities. We supported local producers, had a vegetarian menu and recycled our left over materials.

We always strive to build long-term relationships with our financial partners, to ensure the financial sustainability of the event and to guarantee a smoother management for future Organising Committees.

Despite the challenges, we are extremely pleased with this year’s financial report. We would like to thank all of those that contributed to ensure the sustainability of the event and that have facilitated free and discounted facilities, specially swimsa, the City of Geneva, Geneva Youth Hostel and our financial sponsors: The Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research and UNAIDS. If you or your organisation is interested in financially supporting the PreWHA in 2020 and contributing to the growth of global health leaders, please contact the Liaison Officer to the World Health Organisation at lwho@ifmsa.org Expenses

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Budget

Final

1

Materials

€ 450,00

€ 387,00

2

Travel expenses

€1.883,60

€1.633,68

3

Food

€ 8.547,50

€ 7.600,32

4

Venue insurance

€ 135,00

€ 136,80

5

Accommodation

€ 22.953,05

€ 22.423,40

6

Scholarships

€ 5.760,30

€ 5.196,01

7

Budget margin (4% of subtotal)

€ 1.590,78

€ 1.495,09

8

Administration (4% of subtotal)

€ 1.590,78

€ 1.495,09

Total

€ 42.951,09

€ 40.329,15

Income

Budget

Final

1

PreWHA Registration Fees

€ 11.750,00

€11.753,00

2

WHA Accommodation fees

€ 10.500,00

€ 10.580,00

3

Liaison Officers` fees

€ 1.480,00

€ 1.480,00

4

Cash management + Reimbursement

€ 880,00

€ 880,00

5

Leftover 2018

€ 3.332,00

€ 3.332,00

6

Scholarships

€12.500,00

€12.500,00

Total

€ 40.442,00

€ 40.525,00

Net Balance

€ 672,47

€ 3.183,19

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Thank you for reading our report.

In case of any questions about IFMSA’s Pre World Health Assembly events, please contact lwho@ifmsa.org.

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