Working for Health: Five-Year Action Plan for Health Employment and Inclusive Economic Growth

#SDGAction40939

Description

Working for Health accelerates progress towards universal health coverage (UHC) and the 2030 Agenda by catalysing the expansion and transformation of the global health and social workforce through intersectoral actions, sustainable investments and institutional capacity building. The unprecedented doubling in demand for 40 million new health and social sectors jobs by 2030 in primarily wealthier countries occurs alongside the projected shortfall of 18 million health workers in mostly poorer countries. This strategic intersectoral programme converts workforce demand, supply and need mismatches into powerful socio-economic dividends through quality education, decent work and inclusive growth, particularly for women and youth. .

Expected Impact

The Working for Health five-year action plan (http://www.who.int/hrh/com-heeg/action-plan-annexes/en/) deliverables will support Member States to translate the recommendations of the UNSGs High-Level Commission on Health Employment and Economic Growth (hereinafter, the Commission) into action, and also realize related goals of WHOs Global Strategy on Human Resources for Health and the Global Strategic Directions for Strengthening Nursing and Midwifery. 
 
The deliverables will be organized through five workstreams that respond to the available global strategies and recommendations, with priorities set for each year through operational planning processes. 
1. Advocacy, social dialogue and policy dialogue. Galvanizing political support and momentum and building intersectoral commitment at the global, regional and national levels, and strengthening social dialogue and policy dialogue for investments and action. 
2. Data, evidence and accountability. Strengthening data and evidence through implementation of the national health workforce accounts and the Global Health Labour Market Data Exchange; enhancing accountability through monitoring, review and action; and strengthening knowledge management. 
3. Education, skills and jobs. Accelerating the implementation of intersectoral national health workforce strategies designed to achieve a sustainable health workforce. 
4. Financing and investments. Supporting Member States in catalysing sustainable financing for increased investments in health and social workforces through financing reforms and increased domestic and international resources. 
5. International labour mobility. Facilitating policy dialogue, analysis and institutional capacity-building to maximize mutual benefits from international labour mobility. 
 
The implementation of the five-year action plan will follow the key principles of: 
(a) supporting the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 
(b) being guided by United Nations General Assembly resolutions, World Health Assembly resolutions, normative frameworks and instruments, and International Labour Standards 
(c) being country-led and driven, with the agencies working in close consultation with governments, employers and workers organizations as well as other key partners at the country, regional and global levels 
(d) focusing on making an impact and achieving tangible results at the country level and in key sectors 
(e) combining immediate action and longer-term strengthening of laws, policies and institutions 
(f) making full use of institutional mandates, strengths and value-added activities across three agencies without duplication; including utilizing existing initiatives, knowledge platforms, networks and lessons learned, particularly those related to education and skills, gender equality, youth employment and decent work, health emergencies amongst others 
(g) harnessing and building on credible data and analysis to monitor progress and impact at the national, regional and global levels.

Capacity

The leadership and stewardship role of Member States and other key stakeholders are critical to implementation of the Commissions recommendations in line with WHOs global strategy on human resources for health and guided by resolution WHA69.19 (2016) adopting that strategy and the United Nations General Assemblys resolution 71/159 (2016) on Global health and foreign policy: health employment and economic growth. All stakeholders have an important role to play and must work together across sectors of education, health, labour, finance and foreign affairs to invest in and transform current health workforce models to be sustainable and fit-for-purpose. Country ownership, all-of-government approaches, social dialogue and outreach to other partners are essential foundations for the implementation of the Commissions recommendations. 
 
With this programme ILO, OECD and WHO, together with other partners and global initiatives working on relevant goals of the 2030 Agenda can support and facilitate country-driven action through global public goods and targeted technical cooperation and institutional capacity-building, particularly in priority countries. 
 
By joining forces ILO, OECD and WHO will be better able to work with Member States and stakeholders in the formulation of comprehensive, intersectoral and integrated national health workforce strategies by strengthening capacities for strengthening labour market data, analysis, evidence, concerted tripartite social dialogue and the mobilization of domestic and international resources to implement these. 
 
Existing opportunities and mechanisms across agencies will be utilized to the greatest extent possible through available projects, collaborations and initiatives, and strengthening international, SouthSouth and triangular cooperation to streamline efforts towards the implementation of the five-year action plan. 
 
The online data exchange and knowledge platform website will serve as a resource to strengthen institutional capacity to expand and transform the health and social workforce by enabling enhanced access to relevant data, analysis, evidence, policies, practices, lessons learned and guidance.

Governed

ILO, OECD and WHO will oversee and coordinate the implementation of the five-year action plan through regular decision-making meetings at the senior management level; a Steering Committee of the three organizations is being established for that purpose. 
 
Working under the direction of the Steering Committee, a joint Technical Secretariat will be responsible for developing annual operational plans, ensuring effective implementation, communications and knowledge management, stakeholder management, consultative processes, monitoring and evaluation, and reporting. Expertise across the three organizations will be organized into the five workstreams to design and implement the technical strategy required to implement the action plan at national, regional and global levels. A high-level Advisory Committee will provide strategic input and political support. 
 
Effective implementation of the five-year action plan will require intersectoral and multistakeholder engagement and collaboration. Regular consultative processes with Member States and key stakeholders will be embedded into the implementation process of the five-year action plan to facilitate input and technical exchange. ILO, OECD and WHO will explore engagement with key stakeholders across sectors at global, regional and national levels as an integral part of conducting their work and drawing on available institutional capacities to derive added value in implementing the action plan in the most effective and efficient way. 
 
A website will be established as an online knowledge platform to strengthen intersectoral knowledge management, coordination, analysis, and dissemination of evidence and best practice to inform intersectoral plans, actions and investments. 
 
The Global Health Workforce Network, coordinated by WHO at the request of Member States, will serve as a mechanism across all workstreams to engage other United Nations agencies, organizations and stakeholders across sectors in the implementation process of the five-year action plan at national, regional and global levels.

Partners

ILO, OECD, WHO

SDGS & Targets

Goal 4

Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

4.1

By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes

4.1.1

Proportion of children and young people (a) in grades 2/3; (b) at the end of primary; and (c) at the end of lower secondary achieving at least a minimum proficiency level in (i) reading and (ii) mathematics, by sex

4.1.2

Completion rate (primary education, lower secondary education, upper secondary education)

4.2

By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education

4.2.1

Proportion of children aged 24–59 months who are developmentally on track in health, learning and psychosocial well-being, by sex

4.2.2

Participation rate in organized learning (one year before the official primary entry age), by sex

4.3

By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university

4.3.1

Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal education and training in the previous 12 months, by sex

4.4

By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship

4.4.1

Proportion of youth and adults with information and communications technology (ICT) skills, by type of skill

4.5

By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations

4.5.1

Parity indices (female/male, rural/urban, bottom/top wealth quintile and others such as disability status, indigenous peoples and conflict-affected, as data become available) for all education indicators on this list that can be disaggregated

4.6

By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy

4.6.1

Proportion of population in a given age group achieving at least a fixed level of proficiency in functional (a) literacy and (b) numeracy skills, by sex

4.7

By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development

4.7.1

Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education and (d) student assessment

4.a

Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all

4.a.1

Proportion of schools offering basic services, by type of service

4.b

By 2020, substantially expand globally the number of scholarships available to developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States and African countries, for enrolment in higher education, including vocational training and information and communications technology, technical, engineering and scientific programmes, in developed countries and other developing countries

4.b.1

Volume of official development assistance flows for scholarships by sector and type of study

4.c

By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing States

4.c.1

Proportion of teachers with the minimum required qualifications, by education level

Goal 8

Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

8.1

Sustain per capita economic growth in accordance with national circumstances and, in particular, at least 7 per cent gross domestic product growth per annum in the least developed countries

8.1.1

Annual growth rate of real GDP per capita

8.2

Achieve higher levels of economic productivity through diversification, technological upgrading and innovation, including through a focus on high-value added and labour-intensive sectors

8.2.1

Annual growth rate of real GDP per employed person

8.3

Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services

8.3.1

Proportion of informal employment in total employment, by sector and sex

8.4

Improve progressively, through 2030, global resource efficiency in consumption and production and endeavour to decouple economic growth from environmental degradation, in accordance with the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production, with developed countries taking the lead

8.4.1

Material footprint, material footprint per capita, and material footprint per GDP

8.4.2

Domestic material consumption, domestic material consumption per capita, and domestic material consumption per GDP

8.5

By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value

8.5.1

Average hourly earnings of female and male employees, by occupation, age and persons with disabilities

8.5.2

Unemployment rate, by sex, age and persons with disabilities

8.6

By 2020, substantially reduce the proportion of youth not in employment, education or training

8.6.1

Proportion of youth (aged 15-24 years) not in education, employment or training

8.7

Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms

8.7.1

Proportion and number of children aged 5‑17 years engaged in child labour, by sex and age

8.8

Protect labour rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers, including migrant workers, in particular women migrants, and those in precarious employment

8.8.1

Fatal and non-fatal occupational injuries per 100,000 workers, by sex and migrant status

8.8.2

Level of national compliance with labour rights (freedom of association and collective bargaining) based on International Labour Organization (ILO) textual sources and national legislation, by sex and migrant status

8.9

By 2030, devise and implement policies to promote sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products

8.9.1

Tourism direct GDP as a proportion of total GDP and in growth rate

8.10

Strengthen the capacity of domestic financial institutions to encourage and expand access to banking, insurance and financial services for all

8.10.1

(a) Number of commercial bank branches per 100,000 adults and (b) number of automated teller machines (ATMs) per 100,000 adults

8.10.2

Proportion of adults (15 years and older) with an account at a bank or other financial institution or with a mobile-money-service provider

8.a

Increase Aid for Trade support for developing countries, in particular least developed countries, including through the Enhanced Integrated Framework for Trade-Related Technical Assistance to Least Developed Countries

8.a.1

Aid for Trade commitments and disbursements

8.b

By 2020, develop and operationalize a global strategy for youth employment and implement the Global Jobs Pact of the International Labour Organization

8.b.1

Existence of a developed and operationalized national strategy for youth employment, as a distinct strategy or as part of a national employment strategy

Goal 5

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

5.1

End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere

5.1.1

Whether or not legal frameworks are in place to promote, enforce and monitor equality and non‑discrimination on the basis of sex

5.2

Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation

5.2.1

Proportion of ever-partnered women and girls aged 15 years and older subjected to physical, sexual or psychological violence by a current or former intimate partner in the previous 12 months, by form of violence and by age

5.2.2

Proportion of women and girls aged 15 years and older subjected to sexual violence by persons other than an intimate partner in the previous 12 months, by age and place of occurrence

5.3

Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation

5.3.1

Proportion of women aged 20-24 years who were married or in a union before age 15 and before age 18

5.3.2

Proportion of girls and women aged 15-49 years who have undergone female genital mutilation/cutting, by age

5.4

Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work through the provision of public services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the promotion of shared responsibility within the household and the family as nationally appropriate

5.4.1

Proportion of time spent on unpaid domestic and care work, by sex, age and location

5.5

Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life

5.5.1

Proportion of seats held by women in (a) national parliaments and (b) local governments

5.5.2

Proportion of women in managerial positions

5.6

Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences

5.6.1

Proportion of women aged 15-49 years who make their own informed decisions regarding sexual relations, contraceptive use and reproductive health care

5.6.2

Number of countries with laws and regulations that guarantee full and equal access to women and men aged 15 years and older to sexual and reproductive health care, information and education

5.a

Undertake reforms to give women equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to ownership and control over land and other forms of property, financial services, inheritance and natural resources, in accordance with national laws

5.a.1

(a) Proportion of total agricultural population with ownership or secure rights over agricultural land, by sex; and (b) share of women among owners or rights-bearers of agricultural land, by type of tenure

5.a.2

Proportion of countries where the legal framework (including customary law) guarantees women’s equal rights to land ownership and/or control

5.b

Enhance the use of enabling technology, in particular information and communications technology, to promote the empowerment of women

5.b.1

Proportion of individuals who own a mobile telephone, by sex

5.c

Adopt and strengthen sound policies and enforceable legislation for the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls at all levels

5.c.1

Proportion of countries with systems to track and make public allocations for gender equality and women’s empowerment

Goal 3

Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

3.1

By 2030, reduce the global maternal mortality ratio to less than 70 per 100,000 live births

3.1.1

Maternal mortality ratio

3.1.2

Proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel

3.2

By 2030, end preventable deaths of newborns and children under 5 years of age, with all countries aiming to reduce neonatal mortality to at least as low as 12 per 1,000 live births and under-5 mortality to at least as low as 25 per 1,000 live births

3.2.1

Under-five mortality rate

3.2.2

Neonatal mortality rate

3.3

By 2030, end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases and combat hepatitis, water-borne diseases and other communicable diseases

3.3.1

Number of new HIV infections per 1,000 uninfected population, by sex, age and key populations

3.3.2

Tuberculosis incidence per 100,000 population

3.3.3

Malaria incidence per 1,000 population

3.3.4

Hepatitis B incidence per 100,000 population

3.3.5

Number of people requiring interventions against neglected tropical diseases

3.4

By 2030, reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being

3.4.1

Mortality rate attributed to cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes or chronic respiratory disease

3.4.2

Suicide mortality rate

3.5

Strengthen the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful use of alcohol

3.5.1

Coverage of treatment interventions (pharmacological, psychosocial and rehabilitation and aftercare services) for substance use disorders

3.5.2

Alcohol per capita consumption (aged 15 years and older) within a calendar year in litres of pure alcohol

3.6

By 2020, halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents

3.6.1

Death rate due to road traffic injuries

3.7

By 2030, ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes

3.7.1

Proportion of women of reproductive age (aged 15-49 years) who have their need for family planning satisfied with modern methods

3.7.2

Adolescent birth rate (aged 10-14 years; aged 15-19 years) per 1,000 women in that age group

3.8

Achieve universal health coverage, including financial risk protection, access to quality essential health-care services and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all

3.8.1

Coverage of essential health services

3.8.2

Proportion of population with large household expenditures on health as a share of total household expenditure or income

3.9

By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination

3.9.1

Mortality rate attributed to household and ambient air pollution

3.9.2

Mortality rate attributed to unsafe water, unsafe sanitation and lack of hygiene (exposure to unsafe Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for All (WASH) services)

3.9.3

Mortality rate attributed to unintentional poisoning

3.a

Strengthen the implementation of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in all countries, as appropriate

3.a.1

Age-standardized prevalence of current tobacco use among persons aged 15 years and older

3.b

Support the research and development of vaccines and medicines for the communicable and non-communicable diseases that primarily affect developing countries, provide access to affordable essential medicines and vaccines, in accordance with the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health, which affirms the right of developing countries to use to the full the provisions in the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights regarding flexibilities to protect public health, and, in particular, provide access to medicines for all

3.b.1

Proportion of the target population covered by all vaccines included in their national programme

3.b.2

Total net official development assistance to medical research and basic health sectors

3.b.3

Proportion of health facilities that have a core set of relevant essential medicines available and affordable on a sustainable basis

3.c

Substantially increase health financing and the recruitment, development, training and retention of the health workforce in developing countries, especially in least developed countries and small island developing States

3.c.1

Health worker density and distribution

3.d

Strengthen the capacity of all countries, in particular developing countries, for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks

3.d.1

International Health Regulations (IHR) capacity and health emergency preparedness

3.d.2

Percentage of bloodstream infections due to selected antimicrobial-resistant organisms

SDG 14 targets covered

Name	Description

Deliverables & Timeline

01 March, 2018

An online data exchange and knowledge platform established to strengthen intersectoral knowledge management, coordination, analysis, and dissemination of evidence and best practice to inform health and social workforce plans, actions and investments.

01 March, 2018

Labour mobility platform established to strengthen monitoring, evidence and policy dialogue to maximize benefits from international health worker mobility.

01 December, 2021

Massive scale-up of socially accountable and transformative professional, technical and vocational education and training supported with technical cooperation, institutional capacity-building and financing.

01 December, 2021

Development and implementation of national health workforce strategies, medium-term fiscal frameworks and investments supported with technical assistance and institutional capacity-building to ensure decent work, gender-transformative approaches, and current and future sustainable health workforce.

Resources mobilized

Staff / Technical expertise

Staff and technical expertise across ILO, OECD and WHO at all levels will be leveraged in this programme.

Partnership Progress

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