Rethinking Determinants of Health in Today’s Global Context: From Knowledge to Action

Forty years after the Ottawa Charter, health promotion and the importance of the determinants of health are widely recognised, yet their translation into effective policy and action remains limited.

Despite strong evidence and successive approaches, including, among others, the Social Determinants of Health framework, Primary Health Care, Health in All Policies, Healthy Settings (such as Healthy Cities), WHO urban health strategies, and more recent perspectives on commercial determinants and well-being promoted by the World Health Organization, implementation continues to be constrained by fragmented governance, political and economic barriers, and persistent sectoral silos.

In today’s context of climate change, widening inequalities, urbanisation, and geopolitical instability, the need for integrated, preventive, and equity-oriented approaches is more urgent than ever.

These issues are also central to current global health debates, including at WHA79, where strengthening multisectoral action and addressing the structural determinants of health are key priorities.

Building on country and institutional experiences, this session will focus on what works in practice, identifying enabling factors and actionable lessons to support the operationalisation of the determinants of health and strengthen global health cooperation.