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Europe - defined as both the geographical grouping of European countries and the political entity, the European Union - has long been an important global health actor. As a group, the European countries and the European Union are major donors and a key political player in shaping global health governance. They are also a significant driving force behind the determinants of health and the global economic system.

The European Union is both the world's largest trading bloc and the largest provider of development assistance. Yet these two factors have not been linked in a coherent manner in their impact on health. Only recently has it been recognized that there is a need for greater strategic direction in relation to global health within and between European countries and at European Union level. This is as much due to global developments as it is to the fact that the European Commission now has a formal legal personality that can enter into binding international agreements on behalf of member states.

By 2010, the European Union's global health activities will have reached a major milestone with the release of the European Commission's first framework communication on the European Union's role in global health. In light of the ongoing work for this new policy, Global Health Europe has commissioned a series of papers that investigate the role of the European Union as a global health actor - past, present and future. The aim is to present a consolidated view of the European Union's current and multifaceted role in global health. Through this research, and related online discussions and events, Global Health Europe advocates for stronger European engagement in global health and new policies that capitalize on what Europe has already accomplished.

Geneva, 23 November 2009

Ilona Kickbusch
Director, Global Health Programme
Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva
Chair, Global Health Europe Task Force
GLOBAL HEALTH EUROPE RESEARCH PAPER N° 1 | 2009
Open Think Tank - GHE Research Papers

VanSchaikPaperGetting better: the European Union's performance in the World Health Organization

By Louise van Schaik

Abstract
This paper analyses the performance of the European Union (EU) in the World Health Organization (WHO). It sets out a framework for analysing the EU's performance in relation to unity in external representation. EU unity is assumed to be derived from European Community (EC) competence, the preference homogeneity of EU member states, and the socialization into EU practices of their representatives. The article discusses the increased Europeanization and internationalization of health issues. It argues that this makes it almost inevitable that the EU is becoming a more unified actor within WHO negotiations. At the same time, it points to limitations impeding the EU's performance that are to be taken into account, notably EU member states being cautious about ceding competences to the EU on health issues, them having widely diverging preferences on issues such as reproductive rights, and not fully trusting the European Commission to take over external representation in WHO negotiations.

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