Mr. President,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its 27 Member States.

The Candidate Countries the Republic of North Macedonia and Albania, the country of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidate Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Georgia, align themselves with this statement.

We would like to thank the President of the General Assembly and the co-facilitators, Japan and Guyana for their efforts.

Agreeing on the modalities for the High Level Meeting (HLM) today is an important milestone for the High Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage and therefore we welcome the resolution.

Let me turn to the importance of civil society participation in this HLM, a high priority for the European Union. And the reason for us to co-sponsor together with others, in a broad cross-regional initiative – an amendment, requesting the deletion of OP11.

In our view, the language in OP11 was not previously agreed and frankly speaking, it was not properly negotiated. Although the EU voiced strong concerns about this paragraph and requested further consultations when breaking the silence, no further meaningful engagement took place.

OP11 creates a new role for the Secretariat in “screening” CSO applicants that is inconsistent with previous practice. Furthermore, the EU believes the language is extremely vague and creates many unanswered questions. It neither specifies on what basis and criteria the evaluation should take place, nor what the consequences of such screening and evaluation process are to be. This is not acceptable, when dealing with such an important question and potentially limiting the scope of decision-making by the General Assembly on the matter.

The EU feels this particular paragraph attempts to detract from and weaken the highly important language on CSO participation in OP10. OP10 clearly states the Office of the President of the General Assembly puts forward the list of CSO’s. Member states then have the opportunity to consider the list, after which the General Assembly debates and decides on the matter. A perfect intergovernmental process accompanied by intergovernmental decision-making. We note that OP10 has already proven its functionality. It has not only been adopted in various previous modalities resolutions, but is has also been tested in practice and it has clearly proven that it works. For example in the context of the HIV/AIDS High-Level-Meeting this June, enabling an open and transparent process that gives the final decision on the list of CSOs to the General Assembly.

OP11 however re-establishes a veil of secrecy over the process through its ambiguous language and unclear implications with regard to the list presented to the General Assembly. The EU and its Member States, together with many other delegations, have constantly raised strong concerns about rejections of CSOs that are exercised in an arbitrary manner. We cannot accept unclear pre-screening processes to be introduced in OP11, which may undermine the transparency of the intergovernmental decision-making process according to OP10.

Universal Health Coverage is a matter of concern to all. It is not only fundamental for achieving SDG 3, but also to the eradication of poverty in all its forms and dimensions, the achievement of gender equality and women’s empowerment and many other goals across the 2030 Agenda. UHC is furthermore crucial to ensure the right of every human being, without distinction of any kind, to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.

CSO activities have played a crucial role and contributed extensively, as demonstrated by their active participation in the 2019 High-Level-Meeting on UHC and the Africa Health Agenda International Conference 2021. CSOs, like the more than 850 organizations under the Civil Society Engagement Mechanism for UHC 2030 (CSEM), influence decision-making through advocacy, provide essential capacity building in the global south and represent the voice of the marginalized and the vulnerable.

The High Level meeting will discuss how to achieve Universal Health Coverage, ensuring that all individuals and communities have access to the quality essential health services they need without suffering financial hardship.  The COVID-19 pandemic, which, among other things, has threatened and hindered the ability of health systems to provide other essential health services in many countries around the world, has demonstrated that this discussion has become ever more important. To inform us, we need to hear experiences from all involved. We cannot afford to let important experiences go unheard. We cannot afford miss out on the support of any stakeholder when it comes to Universal Health Coverage. The COVID pandemic has shown, that when it comes to health, that it is indeed very much an issue that belongs to all.

Deleting OP11 constitutes a return to recently agreed modalities for High Level Meetings and well-established modalities of previous years in the UN. 

Thank you.