WISH more than just a forum for dialogue: Vice Chair Global Fund

Doha, Qatar: The 2024 World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) concluded recently, drawing global leaders, innovators, and activists to discuss the m...

Doha, Qatar: The 2024 World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) concluded recently, drawing global leaders, innovators, and activists to discuss the most pressing challenges in healthcare.

Among the notable attendees was the Vice Chair of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Global Fund) and a member of the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, Bience Gawanas, who shared her perspectives on resilience, humanitarian crises, and the evolving role of the Global Fund in addressing global health challenges.

Speaking exclusively to The Peninsula, she emphasised the importance of platforms like WISH, describing them as more than just forums for dialogue.

“Some people might say, is this just another talk show? But we need spaces to talk, share, and learn. That’s the context in which I’ve experienced WISH,” Gawanas, Namibia’s first Ombudswoman, who later became the inaugural Commissioner for Social Affairs at the African Union Commission, said.

Her reflections on WISH were anchored in themes of resilience and humanity. “We’ve seen incredible examples of resilience, such as doctors in Gaza who refuse to leave, saying, ‘If we leave, what happens?’ That’s commitment to humanity,” she noted.