Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-09-03-Speech-3-276"
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"en.20030903.11.3-276"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the rapporteur has presented a very comprehensive report demonstrating, in an impressive and multi-faceted way, that there can be no sustainable development without good health. Poverty reduction must therefore be linked as a matter of urgency with measures to combat diseases, and great efforts are needed to build an effective healthcare system in the developing countries. In this context, we must focus first and foremost on the most vulnerable population groups, such as children, who die, as previous speakers have said, in their hundreds of thousands every year from diarrhoeal diseases. They die of infectious diseases because they are denied the vaccinations which could save them, and they fall victim to malaria – hundreds of thousands of children every year – because their immune systems are not robust enough to survive this disease.
These examples show that health problems in the developing countries, especially among children, certainly do not always result from life-threatening diseases. Often, they fall victim to illnesses capable of being cured or prevented if the necessary drugs or vaccinations are available. Women, too, are especially at risk. Giving birth to many children at short intervals destroys women’s reproductive health, causing severe anaemia and increasing their susceptibility to infectious diseases. Poor food or malnutrition also undermines the health of large sections of the population – for hunger is not just hunger, it also saps the strength necessary to build a good life.
It has quite rightly been pointed out, and I say this again, that sustainable development is under threat. It is true that a holistic strategy is required. It is not just primarily a matter of medical care. The scenario we are dealing with today – and this is where the campaign against tuberculosis, malaria, and AIDS comes into play – is that we are dealing with diseases – AIDS in particular – which are not curable but which can be treated, thus giving people the opportunity to live for longer. Nonetheless, the fact that there is no cure for it means that we must also address the issue of prevention. This is an extremely important area, and must also be included in a holistic healthcare system.
I am convinced that we can generate more support for these campaigns in many ways if we highlight the severe economic impacts sustained by countries where a large number of people are affected by these diseases. According to the statistics which I have available, in Burkina Faso, agricultural production has decreased by 16% because people are sick or have already died of AIDS and therefore can no longer work in agriculture.
In Swaziland, school attendance among girls has decreased by 36% because they have to care for their parents who are sick with AIDS. Ultimately, only the grandparents will be left. This means that massive economic damage will result in these countries unless there is an effective healthcare system to help restore public health to the necessary level."@en1
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