Delivering on UHC in an Era of Pushback Against Gender Equality and Human Rights

On May 22, 2025, the Global Center for Health Diplomacy and Inclusion (CeHDI) co-hosted a powerful side event organized in conjunction with the 78th World Health Assembly (WHA78) and in collaboration with CNS Citizen News, the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights (WGNRR), Fòs Feminista, ICASA 2025, The Legal Caravan, and the Society for AIDS in Africa.

The panel discussion, "Delivering on UHC in an era of pushback against gender equality and right to health" brought together global health professionals, journalists, civil society actors, and international organizations to discuss how to protect and advance gains made towards realizing health as a human right including sexual and reproductive health and rights in an increasingly fraught global context. Biruk Tewodros, CeHDI, and Shoba Shukla, CNS moderated the event. A video message from Dr. Tlaleng Mofokeng, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, opened the discussion. Dr. Mofokeng emphasized how the Right to Health is an essential component of Universal Health Coverage; it encompasses freedom and entitlements, but also responsibilities for governments and ministries. She warned against the encroachment of anti-rights and anti-gender narratives in global health discourse. She encouraged event participants to use their voices to emphasize the function of health as a fundamental human right. Dr. Mofokeng closed her address by calling for a “bold reimagining of public health governance” built on international solidarity.

The panel discussion featured Fadekemi Akinfaderin of Fòs Feminista, Dr. Eliezer Lappots-Abreu of Health Horizons International, Dr. Harjyot Khosa of IPPF, and Baba Aye of Public Services International. Each speaker addressed how anti-rights movements are shaping the policy landscape around UHC and SRHR with ripples across their unique areas of expertise, and stressed that rights-based health systems must remain central. They also discussed shrinking civic space, inclusive health governance, and community-driven responses.

Fadekemi Akinfaderin noted that anti-rights actors are using the same rights-based language to advance regressive agendas. This calls for vigilance and clear advocacy to counter such messages.

Dr. Eliezer Lappots-Abreu reflected on his experience using participatory activities to help communities identify and articulate inequitable barriers to care, saying, “We use theatre-based reflection to surface barriers people face in real life so that we can co-createsolutions.”

Dr. Harjyot Khosa emphasized the role of civil society and stated, “We are not just service providers. Civil society is part of the policy process, and we are legitimate actors who understand people’s realities.”

Baba Aye focused on the lived experiences of frontline workers, stating, “We must recognize the violence and repression workers face when they speak out for rights. A system that ignores this cannot deliver UHC.”

Participants also reflected on how rights are being undermined through coordinated narratives in their questions and comments to the panel. Mona Yadav, a gender activist from India, expressed appreciation for the participatory approach shared by Dr. Eliezer, stating that it brought out the urgency of focusing on the right to health through community-driven reflection. The constant challenges faced by health workers in conflict areas, such as in Gaza were raised as a key barrier to the right to health and access to health care.

. Panelists and participants mutually reinforced calls to ensure that health innovations, including digital health and artificial intelligence tools, are inclusive and rights-based rather than built on existing inequities, noting both the promise and pitfalls of telemedicine and other mechanisms.

The event concluded with the inaugural Sexual Health with Equity (SHE) & Rights Media Awards ceremony, presented by Kelcey Armstrong-Walenczak of CeHDI. These awards recognized outstanding journalism advancing SRHR narratives and tackling anti-rights regressive policies in the Global South. The SHE & Rights Media Initiative is an ongoing collaborative effort of CeHDI and CNS to foster critical, equity-driven journalism that responds to and reports on sexual and reproductive health topics with sensitivity, inclusive language, and evidence-based scientific grounding.

Ojoma Akor of Nigeria, Catherine Murombedzi of Zimbabwe, and Kalpana Acharya of Nepal were honored for their achievements in the media space. Special Mentions were also accorded to Babacar Sene (Senegal), Betty Herlina (Indonesia), Audrey Galawu (Zimbabwe), Yecenu Sasetu (Nigeria), and Hamu Madzedze (Zimbabwe).

The event was closed with remarks from Dr. David Parirenyatwa, Senator and former Minister of Health of Zimbabwe, and President of ICASA 2025.

The meeting stressed the urgency of collective action to protect the Right to Health and defend gender equality in the face of the growing resistance and anti-rights movement.

The entire team at CeHDI and CNS would like to thank the panelists and participants for their active engagement and looks forward to future high-level dialogues on advancing global health equity The full ceremony and event were livestreamed and are available on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7d0EkfnYs4&ab_channel=CeHDI