By Matters India Reporter

Chiang Mai: Churches in Asia should promote health-seeking behavior and take on more responsibilities in their mission and witness towards health and healing, says a statement the Christian Conference of Asia released April 7, the World Health Day–2021.

“We must equip ourselves with relevant information and theological reflections of our social and moral obligations to each other in order to eliminate fear, hesitancy, and misinformation regarding vaccines,” says the statement signed by conference general secretary Reverend Mathews George Chunakara.

Chunakara also highlighted the role of churches in building trust in the Covid-19 vaccine, shattering myths and misconceptions surrounding pandemic responses, and providing and amplifying correct information from medical authorities during the pandemic.

Elaborating on the theme of World Health Day–2021, “Building a fairer, healthier world,” Chunakara spoke of the health concerns of the Covid-19 pandemic: “As Covid-19 vaccines begin to be rolled out gradually, there are alarming disparities in access to them across the world. Although the scientific development of the vaccine in record time is a great achievement, it remains to be seen if global political will and moral commitment would supplement the science in bringing about the end of the pandemic.”

Condemning the surge in the global trend of vaccine nationalism, Chunakara stated that the issue “served as a snapshot of global inequality and was representative of all the forces that prevent the realization of equality, fairness, and justice.”

The World Health Day is a global health awareness day celebrated every year on April 7, under the sponsorship of the World Health Organization (WHO), as well as other related organizations.

It aims to raise awareness about the overall health and well-being of people across the globe. Millions of people around the world are prey to many terrible diseases.

The celebration stresses that health is not just about physical well-being but also about the mental and social aspects.

A person is said to be healthy if he or she possesses all three. According to the WHO, health is central to human happiness and well-being. It also makes an important contribution to economic progress, as healthy populations live longer and are more productive.

The campaign highlights WHO’s constitutional principle that “the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or social condition.”

The theme last year was “Supporting Nurses And Midwives.”

The WHO held the First World Health Assembly In 1948 that decided to celebrate April 7 of each year, with effect from 1950, as the World Health Day. The day is held to mark WHO’s founding and is seen as an opportunity by the organization to draw worldwide attention to a subject of major importance to global health each year.

The WHO organizes international, regional and local events on the Day related to a particular theme. World Health Day is acknowledged by various governments and non-governmental organizations with interests in public health issues, who also organize activities and highlight their support in media reports, such as the Global Health Council.

Full text of the CCA statement:

CCA’s Statement on World Health Day–2021 – “Building a fairer, healthier world”

The global COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the necessity of prioritizing equitable healthcare and access to affordable high-quality services with strong commitments from all stakeholders. The vulnerable and the marginalized communities are still being left behind in testing, treatment, and even vaccination during this global pandemic.

Given that over fifty percent of the world’s population has no access to social protection or adequate healthcare, the impacts are estimated to be manifold. Fragile health systems characterized, for the most part, by a lack of basic medical care facilities together with under-resourced hospitals are a common trend in Asia.

The theme of the World Health Day–2021, “Building a fairer, healthier world”, is a timely one and helps to address health concerns in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. As COVID-19 vaccines begin to be rolled out gradually, there are alarming disparities in access to them across the world. Although the scientific development of the vaccine in record time is a great achievement, it remains to be seen if global political will and moral commitment would supplement the science in bringing about the end of the pandemic.

Contemporary issues regarding vaccine nationalism and vaccine distribution serve as a snapshot of global inequality, and are representative of all the forces that prevent the realization of equality, fairness, and justice. As the World Health Organisation (WHO) observes, “International collaboration among scientists was critical to vaccine development, but now weak cooperation between nations is a major barrier to achieving worldwide vaccination at the scale needed to end the pandemic.”

Several developed countries continue to hoard vaccines, buying up scarce supplies of doses, and in some cases, even preventing the export of vaccines to other countries.

Asian countries are now at a crossroads and are experiencing a critical window of opportunity of public vaccination. The availability of vaccines for import, scepticism towards vaccines themselves, and the general trust in vaccination across Asia has hindered the outreach of COVID-19 vaccines to a large extent. In many countries, access to vaccines, especially for marginalized communities, will remain a challenge simply given the sheer population that requires vaccination.

A continuing lack of global solidarity and equity in access to COVID-19 vaccines will undermine efforts towards disease control and further derail the project of achieving a pandemic-free world. It is important for the region to ensure that everyone has the knowledge, information, and access for advanced research and development of these vaccines locally.

There is a great role that churches can play in building trust towards a healthier world, particularly in responding to the pandemic. The myths and misconceptions surrounding pandemic responses, especially vaccinations, must be urgently and emphatically addressed by the church. The trust that communities have towards faith leaders can play an important role in restoring health, healing, and wholeness as we recover from this pandemic. The church is also responsible for providing and amplifying correct information from the right medical authorities during the pandemic. We must also equip ourselves with relevant information and theological reflections of our social and moral obligations to each other in order to eliminate the fear, hesitancy, and misinformation regarding vaccines.

Church-owned healthcare institutions and services also need to shine a light on, and reach out to, underserved populations—the poorest of the poor, the rural communities, the socially marginalized, and those in fragile or conflict-prone areas—striving for their inclusion in vaccination and immunization campaigns.

There are different models of health and healing ministries supported and sponsored by Asian churches. However, considering the growing need in different places, churches in Asia should promote health-seeking behavior and take on more responsibilities in their mission and witness towards health and healing. Churches in Asia must be equipped further in shaping Christian witness to contribute to “building a fairer, healthier world.”

Mathews George Chunakara, General Secretary, CCA