Alma Ata Declaration

The Alma Ata Declaration^[1] is an international declaration on improving health through comprehensive primary health care. It was adopted by WHO member states at the International Conference on Primary Health Care held at Alma Ata, Kazakhstan in 1978.

Background

The Declaration was the culmination of a long process of review of national public health strategies, especially with the experience of some member making good progress in decreasing avoidable deaths. The declaration was non-binding on member states of the WHO and emphasized that primary health care was the way to attain a level of health to permit people to lead a socially and economically productive life.^[2]

Description

The Declaration consists of ten parts each reinforcing widely accepted values and policies on health care.

1. Definition of Health
2. Concern over inequity between countries
3. Health as a pre-requisite for economic progress of countries
4. People's right to participate in planning and implementation of health services
5. State responsibility in provision of health care to all citizens
6. Reaffirmation of primary health care as an important strategy to organise health services
7. Components of primary health care
8. Align national policies and build political will to achieve primary health care
9. Cooperation between countries to achieve these goals
10. Health for all by 2000

References

1. ↑ Copy of the Alma Ata Declaration from the website of the World Health Organization PDF
2. ↑ Andy Haines, Richard Horton & Zulfiqar Bhutta. (2007)Primary health care comes of age. Looking forward to the 30th anniversary of Alma-Ata. Comment. The Lancet, 370 (9591). p. 911-913 doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(07)61423-8 Link