Brazil: Launching the Global Health Watch 2

A special programme for launching of the Global Health Watch Report was organized on 7th November 2008 in the 54th Main Book Fair in Porto Alegre. The presentations were jointly organized by the School of Public Health of Rio Grande do Sul and other members of the PHM-Brazil, including the organisations such as: GAPA (AIDS Support and Prevention Group) and ABRASBUCO (Brazilian Association of Collective Oral Health). This was the first time an activity about the Watch took place in Brazil.

During the first hour, short videos about health were projected, including the video about the 2nd People's Health Assembly in Cuenca, 2005, where the GHW1 was launched. After that, the audience, composed mainly by health workers and activists, watched a presentation about PHM and the GHW2. In the first presentation, Denise Nascimento gave a historical overview of the People's Health Movement globally, highlighting the context in which the GHW reports have been produced. Following that, Camila Giugliani provided the audience with an overview of the GHW2, emphazing to the audience the meaning of an alternative report about global health and the need for an alternative development paradigm. After that, Katia Cesa, Eliane Flores, Caroline Zamboni, Patricia Robinson, Marta Conte and Denise Nascimento discussed the various sections of GHW report. They provided general information about each section of the Watch, pointing out some key issues that makes the GHW an alternative report. During the third and last hour of the event, a debate with the audience about relevant topics of the GHW2 took place.

Participants were also very interested in learning more about the PHM. Some points that were emphasized were the need for strengthening of the PHM in order to bring about action and impact, the importance of gathering people and organizations to share positive experiences in such a huge and diverse country such as Brazil and ways of diffusing the GHW2 in Brazil, as well as how to deal with language barriers.