Held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, and in collaboration with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the 2023Reaching the Last Mile(RLM) Forum took place today at Expo City Dubai. The session was held during Health Day of the official COP28 program.
The Forum convened global frontline, governmental and community to galvanise new momentum and commitments to address climate-health challenges faced by last-mile communities, such as polio, malaria, and neglected tropical diseases. Acknowledging the crucial role of inclusive healthcare systems in alleviating the climate crisis’s impact, the discussions also highlighted innovations, initiatives, and funding models that advanced sustainable and equitable healthcare where it was most needed.
High-level participants in attendance included Dr TedrosAdhanomGhebreyesus Director General, World Health Organization;Sir Christopher Hohn, Founder, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation; MrsTsitsiMasiyiwa, Co-Founder and Chair, Higherlife Foundation and Delta Philanthropies; Board Chairperson, The END Fund and Mr Amit Bouri, CEO and Co-Founder, Global Impact Investing Network and Badr Jafar, COP28 Special Representative for Business & Philanthropy and CEO of Crescent Enterprises.
During opening remarks ahead of a panel discussion titled ‘Financing the Last Mile’,Badr Jafar, COP28 Special Representative for Business & Philanthropy,stated that “Acrucialfocus for COP28 is to ensure inclusive engagement from all regions of the world that stand the most to gain from climate action.In doing so, we can enable more capital actors to operate together at speed and at scale, built around a common sense of purpose and urgency.”
Badr Jafar added, “Our next generation is far more attuned to the interconnectedness of climate with a wide range of societal issues, including public health, food security, biodiversity, and economic equity. Reaching the Last Mile demonstrates what happens when the right philanthropic partners come together, in the right way, to take meaningful, targeted and long-term action.”
The Reaching the Last Mile Forum is part of the UAE Leaderships commitment towards eradicating preventable diseases in the world’s most vulnerable communities. The approach involves long-term commitments, emphasizing impactful areas, inspiring collective action, and pioneering innovative solutions. Stakeholders united at the Forum to announce commitments and pledges inspired by COP28’s call to forge a healthier, more resilient future together.