AG/DEC. 30 (XXXII-O/02)

CENTENNIAL OF THE PAN AMERICAN HEALTH ORGANIZATION (PAHO) 

(Adopted at the fourth plenary session held on June 4, 2002) 

            THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY hereby pays tribute to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), as it celebrates its one hundredth anniversary since its foundation in 1902, when delegations from eleven nations in the Americas gathered in Washington to form the International Sanitary Bureau. 

            Since 1950, PAHO has been recognized by the Organization of American States as part of the inter-American system and as its specialized health agency. 

            In its 100 years of existence, PAHO has played a key part in the advancement of public health in the Americas, strengthening national health systems and public health policies, and leading the campaigns to eradicate smallpox, poliomyelitis, and measles. 

            PAHO has won recognition for its efforts to encourage strategic cooperation among member states and associated states, promoting equality in health care, combating disease, and increasing life expectancy and the quality of life in the countries of the Americas. 

            We urge PAHO to continue working with the countries in the Hemisphere, supporting their efforts to implement the mandates of the Summit of the Americas and to achieve equity, poverty reduction, and health for all.