Fwd: WHO Civil Society Commission - applications are open 27.1.2023
Aminu Magashi Garba
From: mncah <mn...@who.int>
Date: Wed, Feb 1, 2023 at 10:06 AM
Subject: WHO Civil Society Commission - applications are open 27.1.2023
To:
Dear civil society representatives,
WHO is pleased to inform you about the launching of the WHO Civil Society Commission, which will take place in mid-2023, around of the World Health Assembly, appropriately also marking the WHO75 celebrations.
With this, we would like to announce open the process for applications from Civil Society organizations and networks to participate in the WHO Civil Society Commission and for expression of interest for the WHO Civil Society Commission Steering Committee membership from individuals representing civil society organizations and networks that have been accepted to participate in the WHO Civil Society Commission or have completed their application process.
Background
Achieving the goals of the WHO General Programme of Work will require support from civil society actors, as they are uniquely positioned to represent and reach target populations, support preparing and responding health emergencies and help advance UHC at global, regional, national and local levels.
The civil society led Ad Hoc Task Team, set up in 2017 to develop strategies for improving engagement between WHO and civil society organizations (CSOs), recommended to WHO the establishment of an “Advisory Committee on WHO-CSO Engagement,” populated with diverse representative cross-section of civil society actors, tasked with supporting, monitoring, and reporting on WHO’s CSO engagement transformation. The dialogues between the WHO Director General and civil society on social participation and accountability conducted in October 2020 and August 2021 reiterated that recommendation and proposed setting up a WHO Civil Society Commission, to which the WHO DG agreed.
The Civil Society Commission
The Civil Society Commission is a WHO network consisting of a Steering Committee, a general meeting and working groups. Its mission is to strengthen dialogue, foster collaboration and provide recommendations to support WHO’s Secretariat in its engagement with civil society at global, regional, and national levels to achieve health for all and the objectives of the WHO General Programme of Work as well as to accelerate attainment of health-related SDGs.
Overall strategic direction and main deliverables for the work of the WHO Civil Society Commission will be provided by its Steering Committee of 10-15 members. Its responsibilities include supporting the development of the overall WHO Civil Society Commission workplans and strategies and coordinate the general meetings. It meets 4 times a year.
The annual general meeting of all the WHO Civil Society Commission participants will take place once a year in hybrid or virtual format, and it will review the Commission annual reports as well as proposed work plans.
The participants will also have a possibility to join or propose working groups which are set up for the purpose of sharing information and collectively working on specific issues that align with the WHO Civil Society Commission’s overall mission and objectives.
WHO will act as its Secretariat, and facilitate and support all the work of the Commission.
Please find attached the Terms of Reference for the WHO Civil Society Commission, for more details.
Civil Society Commission participant
WHO can participate in the Commission?
The Civil Society Commission’s participants consist of non-governmental organizations, including, for example: grassroots community organizations, civil society groups and networks, faith-based organizations, professional groups and patient groups. It is is expected to have representation from a cross section of civil society organizations, from different income settings and geographical areas, as well as global, regional, national, and local levels.
The WHO Civil Society Commission participants must meet the following criteria:
- The aims and purposes should be consistent with the WHO Constitution and conform with WHO’s policies;
- The participants should respect the intergovernmental nature of WHO and the decision-making authority of Member States as set out in the WHO Constitution;
- The participant should be considered a nongovernmental organization in line with the definition set in the WHO’s Framework of Engagement with non-State actors .
- The participant should contribute to the advancement of public health at international, regional, and national and local levels and to the objectives, vision and goal of the WHO Civil Society Commission.
Each WHO Civil Society Commission participant is expected to:
- Adhere to the Terms of Reference of the WHO Civil Society Commission ;
- Actively participate in and support the WHO Civil Society Commission, its purpose, goals, objectives, guiding principles, work and activities;
- Attend and participate actively and constructively at the WHO Civil Society Commission’s regular General and ad hoc meetings;
- Take responsibility according to the division of labor, and make meaningful contributions, in connection with the work and activities of the Civil Society Commission and its working groups
- Act in the best interest of public health in alignment with WHO policies; and
- Ensure effective communication with the Secretariat and the Steering Committee related to activities relevant to its mission and vision.
Submitting the application:
To submit the application for your organization to participate in the WHO Civil Society Commission, please complete the application and submit the required documents on the CSO Commission Application platform. The application process is continuous, there is no cut-off date for applications.
With the application, the applicant is required to provide information on the organization’s name, membership, legal status, objective, governance structure, composition of main decision-making bodies, assets, annual income and funding sources, main relevant affiliations, and webpage address , when and as applicable. A tobacco and arms disclosure statement also has to be signed. Approval of the applicant to participation in the commission will be based on due diligence and risk assessment, in accordance with the eligibility criteria and in accordance with WHO’s rules and policies
Steering Committee membership
Who can express interest?
The Steering Committee comprises of representatives of the WHO Civil Society Commission participants. Individuals expressing their interest to become a member of the Steering Committee must show that she/he has been nominated by her or his organization for the position.
The Steering Committee members are expected to meet the following criteria:
- be familiar with the WHO governance and operational modalities;
- be experienced in civil society activities in advancing health at global, regional, national or local levels;
- not present a potential or real conflict of interest.
Each member of the Steering committee should
- Adhere to the Terms of Reference of the Steering Committee;
- Actively participate in and support the WHO Civil Society Commission, its purpose, goals, objectives, guiding principles, work and activities, through the membership in the Steering Committee;
- Attend and actively participate at the Steering Committee meetings and WHO Civil Society Commission’s General and ad hoc meetings.
Submitting the expression of interest:
To register your interest in being considered for the WHO Civil Society Commission Steering Committee membership, please complete the application form submitting the required documents:
- your recent CV
- short letter of interest indicating your potential contributions to the Steering Committee by using examples of your interests and achievements
- letter from the head of your organization putting forward your candidacy for the Steering Committee of the WHO Civil Society Commission
- short video of yourself (3 mins) introducing yourself and your vision for the WHO Civil Society Commission (in English).
As this is the first time the Steering Committee members are selected, we encourage you to submit your expression of interest on the CSO Commission Steering Committee – expression of interest platform at the same time when your organization applies for participation in the WHO Civil Society Commission, to ensure that the members of the Steering Committee will be in place to develop initial plans for a the Commission well before the first meeting of the Commission mid-2023. Kindly submit your expression of interest for the Steering Committee 27 January 2023 – 10 March 2023.
Please share this with your networks to encourage them to submit their applications as well to join the WHO Civil Society Commission. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at CSOCom...@who.int.
With kind regards,
Taina for WHO Secretariat for the WHO Civil Society Commission
Coordinator & Founder, Africa Health Budget Network (AHBN)
Global Co-convener , Community of Practitioners on Accountability and Social Action in Health (COPASAH)
Publisher, Online Health
Newspaper for Africa - https://healthreporters.info/
Secretariat at the Africa Health Budget Initiative (RC 119436)
"The best among mankind - Is S (He) who benefits others"