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Explore our work with partners, globally and locally, to tackle social and economic injustice using a human rights lens.
Bringing Tax Justice to the Discussion on Strengthening Global Health Governance
We participated in the International Symposium Addressing the Growing Influence of Private Actors in Global Health, which was held from 22 to 24 April 2025.
The event was co-convened by the United Nations University International Institute for Global Health (UNU-IIGH) and the Malaysia-based Third World Network. The symposium, under the theme “Strengthening Global Health Governance: Defending the Public Interest and Holding Powerful Private Actors Accountable.” Bringing together health experts from across the world, the symposium created a vital space for critical dialogue on addressing urgent challenges such as the role of transnational corporations in undermining access to essential medicines and the impact of commercialisation on health service delivery in low- and middle-income countries.
Our Associate Programme Officer- Africa, Roselyne Onyango contributed to the symposium by delivering a presentation that explored the intersection of tax justice and the right to health. She highlighted how deep-rooted failures in the global tax system deprive countries- especially in the Global South- of the domestic resources needed to build and sustain strong public healthcare systems. In her remarks, she introduced the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation as a transformative opportunity to reimagine global tax rules through a human rights lens.
Roselyne emphasised that achieving the right to health through fair taxation is not merely a technical or economic issue but a political struggle. It demands shifting power: from corporations to communities, donor-led models to domestic priorities, and extractive economic systems to just and inclusive governance. The UN Tax Convention represents a historic moment to forge a more equitable international tax order to sustainably finance public health systems rooted in justice and rights.
The symposium concluded with a powerful call for accountability in global health governance. Participants underscored the urgency of building systems that place public interest at the centre and effectively regulate the actions of powerful private actors. There was also a call for increased transparency, stronger regulatory frameworks and greater collaboration between governments, civil society and international organisations to reclaim health as a public good.
