Geneva /Information Office/ 29 June 2015/ HE Qatar Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva Faisal bin Abdullah Al Henzab, in his capacity as the head of the 2015 Social Forum, presented the report of the 2015 Social Forum to the Human Rights Council. The report's recommendations include access to medicines in the context of the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. HE Al-Henzab said that the Social Forum had taken place from 18 to 20 February 2015 and had considered access to medicines in the context of the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, including best practices in this regard. He pointed out that the Forum was held as Qatar had hosted the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) last February. The event brought more than 1000 world leaders, policy makers and healthcare experts in Doha to discuss new and ground-breaking solutions to the most urgent global health challenges. He lauded the unprecedented participation in the three-day Forum which was attended by almost 300 participants and addressed by 35 speakers who spoke in 6 panel sessions and roundtable discussions. "During this Forum, we have heard from governments, academics, activists, doctors, patients, representatives of international organizations and others, representing a broad audience with a common interest in life-saving and other medicines," HE Al Henzab added. HE Qatar Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva said panelists and participants have highlighted a number of good practices, discussed the global public health situation and made recommendations for moving forward. He pointed out that medicines has to be affordable, acceptable, accessible, of good quality, and made available without discrimination, whereas health systems must be strengthened and universal health coverage established. "Health systems must be strengthened and universal health coverage established. States must have sufficient policy space to pursue health objectives and must try to utilize existing resources more effectively, while intellectual property laws needed transformative changes to ensure that the benefits of scientific progress were enjoyed by all people everywhere and without discrimination. Participants called for a new and legally binding treaty on research and development of medicines that would promote innovation and equitable access and said that publicly funded health care systems were the best way to ensure equitable access to health care. The international community must aim for universal access to healthcare in the post-2015 development agenda, which should also include mental health." Concluding, HE Qatar Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva said: "I would like to thank all participants in this year’s Forum for their excellent presentations and statements, and I thank the delegations and members of the audience who have shared their insightful questions, comments and statements with us over the past three days."