Intersectoral Governance for Health in All Policies : Structures, Actions and Experiences

Many of the policies and programs that affect health originate outside the health sector. Governments therefore need to address population health using a strategy or policy principle that fosters intersectoral action.

Health in all policies (HiAP) does just that, encouraging intersectoral approaches to management, coordination and action. This publication captures the research on how intersectoral governance structures operate to help deliver HiAP. It offers a framework for assessing:

* how governments and ministries can initiate action, and
* how intersectoral governance structures can be successfully established, used and sustained.

This publication provides accessible and relevant examples to inform policy-makers of the governance tools and instruments available and equip them for intersectoral action.

The European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies and the International Union for Health Promotion and Education have worked with more than 40 contributors to explore the rationale, theory and evidence for intersectoral governance. This publication contains over 20 mini case studies from Europe, the Americas, Asia and Australia on how countries currently use intersectoral governance for HiAP in their different contexts. It also highlights nine key intersectoral structures and sets out how they facilitate intersectoral action, including:

* cabinet committees and secretariats
* parliamentary committees
* interdepartmental committees and units
* mega-ministries and mergers
* joint budgeting
* delegated financing, and
* public, stakeholder and industry engagement.

Matthias Wismar

M. Davies