In the area of South-South Cooperation, and in keeping with the Brazilian government’s diplomatic policy, FIOCRUZ developed the concept of Health Diplomacy to deal with issues that transcend national borders and expose countries to global influences.
The concept consists of establishing international policies, reflections, and actions based on the idea that health is a fundamental human right and acts as a determinant factor for development.
Based on this premise, institutional participation by FIOCRUZ in Brazil’s foreign policy is oriented towards the establishment and consolidation of strategies based on the principle of international solidarity and the promotion of equity in health.
Action by FIOCRUZ in this field includes:
- Incorporation of the analysis of economic and social factors and determinants located outside the health sector proper;
- Strengthening more equitable participation by less developed countries in the globalization flow;
- Development of international governance for health information, regulation, and cooperation.
In the area of South-South Cooperation, and through the Center for International Relations in Health, FIOCRUZ has also implemented the strategy of structural cooperation, devoted predominantly to the promotion of health systems development in partner countries.
The strategy aims to strengthen the institutions that support the structuring of these systems, including not only the Ministries of Health, but also National Institutes of Health, Public Health and Polytechnic Training Centers, Healthcare Centers, and Health Inputs Production Complexes, among others.
Cooperation is developed through partnerships, with strategic planning shared by the countries, taking the local reality into account, including the country’s own needs and resources. Such cooperation also involves advanced training of health professionals and the appropriation of governance, thereby contributing to sustainability of the resulting improvements.
With strategic orientation anchored in the principles of health diplomacy and structural action for health systems, the South-South cooperation proposed by FIOCRUZ aims to achieve the following social benefits:
- Better quality of life and more health equity for the populations;
- Generation of knowledge and innovation in science and technology applied to health;
- Expanded production of (and access to) essential health inputs;
- Guaranteed adequacy of health-related environmental initiatives.
