The Minister of Health, Nicia Trindade, participated on Wednesday (3), in the “Regional Meeting: Addressing Racial and Racist Inequalities in Health” in Brasilia. Over three days of programming, the event organized by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) brings together popular leaders, experts and authorities from 27 countries to hold dialogues on combating the exclusion of blacks, indigenous peoples and other traditional peoples in the Americas.
The aim of the initiative is to discuss progress and opportunities for advancing the Strategy and Action Plan on Race and Health for the Americas, to be implemented between 2019 and 2025 and agreed upon by unanimous consent of all PAHO Member States.
During the opening, Nicia acknowledged the ethnic and cultural diversity of the Americas, while recalling the indicators that point to health inequalities on the continent. According to the latest census by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), cited by the head of the Ministry of Health, life expectancy in Brazil is, on average, four years less for blacks and indigenous people than for white people.
“Health cannot be considered when we see the reality of racism. The struggle is not only about taking care of users and health workers, but also about combating the social determinants that this discrimination is felt in, such as housing conditions, basic income, access to education and decent working conditions,” he stressed.
Preparatory stage
In her speech, the Minister recalled the preparatory phase for this moment of international dialogue, promoted by the holding of the symposium “Health without racism: dialogue with movements” last month, whose contributions will be presented to the Pan American Health Organization by the Brazilian delegation.
The symposium brought together more than 170 representatives of social movements, academia and public administration and was attended by the Minister of Racial Equality, Anielle Franco, and the Minister of Indigenous Peoples, Sonia Guajajara. “Interministerial work is essential to advance this agenda. Let us move forward effectively in the search for racial and ethnic justice for all our countries,” he concluded.
The regional meeting will continue until next Friday (5), in the Obas Hall in the federal capital.
Nadia Alves Dos Reis
Ministry of Health
