WASHINGTON, United States (CMC) — The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) says a new Sustainable Health Agenda for the Americas, including the Caribbean, is near completion.

The health body said the proposed Sustainable Health Agenda for the Americas 2018-30 (SHAA2030) was the focus of a third meeting of the 16-member Countries’ Working Group (CWG), convened by PAHO in Barbados last week.

“CWG member state representatives joined PAHO staff in an in-depth review of all 11 goals and more than 50 targets contained in the SHAA2030 document,” PAHO said, adding that the agenda is being finalised by the CWG in consultation with all PAHO member states for presentation to the 33rd Pan American Sanitary Conference in September.

The agenda is expected to be approved by national ministries of health of the Americas, making it the highest-level strategic planning and policy framework for collective actions to achieve higher levels of health and well-being throughout the hemisphere by 2030.

The agenda’s goals and targets are largely focused on attaining universal access to health, universal health coverage, resilient health systems, and quality health services, PAHO said.

“It was a very challenging process to draft this visionary document,” said the Barbados Minister of Health John Boyce. “It represents our shared vision for health and well-being of the countries of the Americas, and appropriately responds to and complements our global, subregional, and national health mandates which aim to achieve sustainable health development.”

The SHAA2030 builds on strategic planning for health policy at the highest levels and will be operationalised through PAHO’s strategic plans and strategies, as well as through subregional and national health plans, PAHO said.