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IMPORTANT NOTICE:

As of October 2024, ATACH Working Groups have been discontinued, as the Alliance transitioned to a new operational structure. The below information pertains to the operations of Working Groups in the previous structure of ATACH and is provided for reference only.

Working groups

Working groups may be established by the Secretariat in consultation with the Steering Group. Working Groups are set up to exchange information and collaborate on agreed specific tasks/projects in line with the ATACH’s objectives, mission and functions. Working Groups are accountable to the Steering Group and through the Steering Group to the Secretariat. The Terms of Reference for all Working Groups are approved by the Secretariat in consultation with the Steering Group. Any subsequent change to the Terms of Reference will also be subject to the approval of the Secretariat.

Participation in ATACH Working Groups will be open to any interested Participant. WGs will meet at least every six months.

The co-chairs of the Working Groups will be appointed by WHO in consultation with the Convenors and will rotate as decided by WHO.

Climate Resilient Health Systems 

Mission

Contribute to the attainment of the overall mission of the ATACH, with a specific focus on building climate resilience and adaptation to present, emerging and future health impacts and threats of climate change.

Co-chairs of the ATACH Working Group on Climate Resilient Health Systems for the period 2022-2024:

  • Health Canada
  • Ministre de la Santé, Côte d'Ivoire

Main Objective

Through coordination and collaboration, the ATACH Working Group on Climate Resilient Health Systems strives to support Member States, including those that have signed the COP26 Health Programme commitments on building climate resilient health systems, to progress and drive the climate reliant health systems agenda forward and to promote accountability.

Key objectives:

  • Identify existing technical knowledge and tools for conducting climate change and health vulnerability and adaptation assessments (V&As) and developing health components of national adaptation plans (HNAPs) and make these available to Member States and ATACH partners;
  • Identify, disseminate, strengthen, and advocate for evidence and knowledge on key topics related to climate resilient health systems (e.g., health impacts from climate change, technologies for climate resilient health systems and facilities and opportunities to promote low carbon sustainability, and effectiveness of interventions);
  • Identify and disseminate lessons and best practice from country and partner experiences, and support learning;
  • Identify country needs to implement their CRHS commitments and facilitate access to technical support; and
  • Facilitate access by the health sector to climate change funding for health and ensure health sector’s capacity to develop project proposals on climate change and health is effectively strengthened.

Monitoring:

The CRHS-WG Workplan

The CRHS-WG has developed a workplan to support countries in fulfilling their climate-resilient health systems commitments under the COP26 Health Programme. The key priorities for the working group for 2022-2024 are:

  • Elevate the political representation of climate change and health in relevant health and climate change fora;
  • Promote partnerships that promote climate resilience and a low carbon sustainable pathway;
  • Ensure ATACH has a system in place to regularly monitor progress in implementing the climate resilient health systems’ commitments;
  • Establish a mechanism under the ATACH that facilitates high technical standards in the implementation of the commitments; and
  • Build local and regional capacity on the areas of the commitments, such as V&As, HNAPs, baseline GHG emission etc, along with implementation of CCH plans and interventions for resilience.

See the full workplan, including specific activities and partners here.

 

Low Carbon Sustainable Health Systems

Mission

Contribute to the attainment of the overall mission of the ATACH, with a specific focus on mitigating and building climate resilience and adaptation to present, emerging and future health impacts and threats of climate change.

Co-chairs of the ATACH Working Group on Low Carbon Sustainable Health Systems for the period 2022-2024:

  • Health Care Without Harm
  • Ministry for Health and Medical Services, Republic of Fiji

Main Objective

Through coordination and collaboration, the ATACH Working Group on Low Carbon Sustainable Health Systems strives to support Member States, including those that have signed the COP26 Health Programme commitment, on building sustainable low carbon health systems, to contribute to national net zero goals, and to promote accountability.

Key objectives:

  • Identify existing technical knowledge and tools for measuring the baseline greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of health systems and facilities and make these available to Member States and ATACH partners;
  • Identify, disseminate, strengthen, and advocate for evidence and knowledge on key topics related to low carbon sustainable health systems (e.g., benefits of reducing emissions in health care, technologies for low carbon sustainable health systems and facilities and opportunities to promote low carbon sustainability, and effectiveness of interventions);
  • Identify and disseminate lessons and best practice from country and partner experiences, and support learning;
  • Identify country needs to implement their LCSHS commitments and facilitate access to technical support;
  • Facilitate access by the health sector to climate change funding for health and ensure health sector’s capacity to develop project proposals on climate change and health is effectively strengthened; and
  • Foster collaboration amongst partners to address common challenges and bottle necks, especially where collective action is required to meet mutual goals, e.g., standards, access to finance, engaging and working with the private sector, etc.

Monitoring:

The LCSHS-WG Workplan

The LCSHS-WG has developed a workplan to support countries in fulfilling their low carbon commitments under the COP26 Health Programme. The key priorities for the working group for 2022-2024 are:

  • Support Member States to continue the elevation of LCSHS at policy level to maintain focus on delivering their commitments;
  • Promote accountability through monitoring country progress in the implementation of commitments;
  • Establish a mechanism under the ATACH that facilities high technical standards in the implementation of the commitments; and
  • Facilitate access to knowledge, tools and experiences on decarbonizing heath systems and facilities.

See the full workplan, including specific activities and partners here.

 

Supply Chains

Mission

Recognizing that supply chains contribute to the majority of greenhouse gas emissions from health systems, the ATACH working group on Supply Chains will specifically focus on emission reduction in the supply chain. It will seek and promote solutions and collaborative action in order to ensure clean, green and sustainable health systems. In this way the ATACH working group on Supply Chains contributes to the attainment of the overall mission of the ATACH.

Co-chairs of the ATACH Working Group on Supply Chains for the period 2022-2024:

  • National Health Service (NHS), England
  • Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Bangladesh

Main objective:

Through coordination and collaboration, the ATACH working group on Supply Chains strives to support Member States and other stakeholders, including those that have signed the COP26 Health Programme commitments on building low carbon and sustainable health systems, to address specific challenges in the supply chain and procurement, to progress and drive the climate resilient and low carbon sustainable health systems agenda forward and to promote accountability.

Key objectives:

  • Identify existing technical knowledge products and tools for building low carbon and sustainable supply chains and making them available to Member States and ATACH partners;
  • Identify, disseminate, strengthen, and advocate for evidence and knowledge on key topics related to low carbon and sustainable supply chains (e.g., measuring and reducing carbon emissions from supply chain, sustainable criteria and standard for products and services, life cycle assessment, creating collective demand for sustainable products and supplies);
  • Identify and disseminate lessons and best practice from country and partner experiences in reducing the emissions from supply chain, and support learning;
  • Identify country needs to implement their commitments on low carbon sustainable health systems as they relate to supply chain and facilitate access to technical support;
  • Facilitate access by the health sector to climate change funding for health and ensure health sector’s capacity to develop project proposals on climate change and health is effectively strengthened; and
  • Identify opportunities for collective action to contribute to and drive transformation in behaviour, principles, and standards with a broad range of actors.

Monitoring:

The SC-WG Workplan

The SC-WG has developed a workplan to support countries in fulfilling their climate-resilient health systems commitments under the COP26 Health Programme. The key priorities for the working group for 2022-2024 are:

  • Develop the business case for decarbonizing supply chains in and for health;
  • Develop a monitoring system that allows measuring progress in the implementation of the COP26 LCSHS as it relates to decarbonizing the supply chain;
  • Establish a mechanism under the ATACH that facilitates high technical standards for decarbonizing supply chains; and
  • Develop a community of practice and develop/facilitate access to knowledge, tools, and resources.

See the full workplan, including specific activities and partners here.

 

Financing

Mission

The ATACH WG on Financing contributes to the attainment of the overall mission of the ATACH, with a specific focus on using the collective power of Member States and key stakeholders to identify opportunities and understand and tackle barriers to accessing sustainable finance and resource mobilization, to scale-up investments in climate and health. Resource mobilization refers to both funding and technical assistance that may be required by countries to be able to develop the plans and assessments included in their commitments.  Financing will also be needed for countries to implement those plans.

Co-chairs of the ATACH Financing working group for the period 2022-2024:

  • Germany’s Federal Foreign Office
  • World Bank

Objectives

Through coordination and collaboration, the ATACH Financing working group strives to supports Member States, including those that have signed the COP26 Health Programme commitments on sustainable low carbon health systems, to effectively access funding for projects and mobilize finance to implement plans for climate change and health objectives.

Key objectives

  1. Reducing barriers to funding by delivering a shift in the international financial architecture available for climate change and health: This objective focuses on areas where a global shift can be delivered through the collective power of Member States and other key financial institutions and partners, as appropriate. It reflects collective interest of the ATACH FIN-WG as well as context specific themes which may be more applicable to smaller groupings of Member States.
  2. Maximizing investments in health: This objective would ensure value for money by applying a climate lens and integrating climate resilience and sustainability in health financing to ensure available funds are used as efficiently and equitably as possible.

These objectives will be supported by the following levers:

  1. Monitoring: Track progress and performance of domestic, donor and multilateral finance agencies in mobilising resources to meet country needs to build climate resilient and low carbon sustainable health systems country identify; identify and track progress in addressing the barriers to different finance types; and monitor evolutions in use of financial innovations for climate and health objectives and outcomes.
  2. Knowledge sharing and analytics: This lever provides a forum for alliance participants to share expertise, knowledge and experience gained from analytics to inform access and use of finance for health and climate activities.
  3. Coordinating access to technical assistance: This lever would include support for the design of programs for adaptation and mitigation and for developing funding proposals.

Monitoring:

The FIN-WG Workplan

The FIN-WG has developed a workplan to support countries in fulfilling their climate-resilient health systems commitments under the COP26 Health Programme. The key priorities for the working group for 2022-2024 are:

  • Increase ambition and awareness raising;
  • Increase the capacity of health sector access funding and finance for climate change and heath, including access to technical assistance; and
  • Assess and address challenges faced by countries to access funding and financing for low carbon sustainability in health systems.
Key documents

Please find below useful documents related to activities of the Financing Working Group:

  • Full workplan, including specific activities and partners 
  • Climate and Health Financing Needs: This slide deck summarizes the findings of a qualitative assessment of country needs and opportunities to mobilize financing for climate and health solutions. This assessment was performed through in-depth interviews with 8 countries conducted in February 2024 by the World Health Organization in partnership with the Rockefeller Foundation.

Climate Action and Nutrition

Mission

Contribute to the attainment of the overall mission of the ATACH, with a specific focus on the critical nexus of climate change and nutrition.

Co-chairs of the ATACH Working Group on Climate Action and Nutrition for the period 2022-2024:

  • Ministry of Health and Population of Egypt
  • Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN)

Main Objective

Through coordination and collaboration, the ATACH I-CAN WG strives to help foster collaboration to accelerate transformative action to address the critical nexus of climate change and nutrition.

Key objectives:

  • Build a strong alliance across nutrition and climate communities;
  • Articulate a common, compelling narrative around climate and nutrition;
  • Develop an evidence base on integrating nutrition and climate action; and
  • Strengthen existing efforts to take action and address gaps.

Monitoring: