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EU role in global health still undermined by national policies

07 Aug 2017 - 14:02
Source: Flickr.com

This paper discusses the discrepancy between the EU’s aspiration to be an actor in global health, while national policies of EU member states still dominate the domain. Some EU member states have their own global health strategies, but the conceptual shift from ‘international health’ to ‘global health’ has not emerged across all of them. In some countries a focus on a specific angle or issue jeopardizes a more overarching perspective. A comparative framing analysis of the global health policy documents of the European Commission and seven EU member states points to several issues that impede the EU having ‘added value’ and a common vision in global health. This is problematic since many health issues either require or could benefit from a common European or even global approach, which has become evident during pandemics, but also topics such as resistance to medicines, their prize and the mobility of health workers.  

Clingendael visiting fellow Remco van de Pas contributed to this volume together with other authors. The compilation brings together a number of the best papers that were presented at the interdisciplinary doctoral colloquium ‘The European Union as a Global Actor’ that took place on 8 May 2015. The colloquium was organized by the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies at KU Leuven, in co-operation with the Centre for EU Studies at Ghent University, the Antwerp Centre for Institutions and Multilevel Governance (ACIM) at Antwerp University, the Faculty of Law of KU Leuven and the Leuven Institute for International and European Studies (LINES) at KU Leuven, and with the support of the Flemish Government and the European Society of International Law.