Continuing with Strength: Highlights of the Global Health Hub Germany in 2024

In 2024, the Hub continued to fulfill its mandate to stimulate a dynamic, interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral, and independent global health network where key stakeholders and policymakers make a meaningful impact on global health. With over 2000 members from 8 stakeholder groups, we are proud to represent a thriving network of global health stakeholders in Germany and beyond.

In 2024, the Global Health Hub Germany hosted a range of initiatives to accompany the negotiations towards a UN High- level meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). Our activities included conversations with our steering committee member Christian Griebenow on the challenges of trans-sectoral approaches to AMR, and with Dr. Muna Abu Sin, AMR Ambassador for the Federal Ministry of Health, who shared her insights on the global AMR response and the role of national policies in tackling the crisis. Our Hub Community on AMR gave valuable input on the Zero Draft of the UN High-level Declaration on AMR.

In October 2024, the Global Health Hub Germany hosted a parliamentary evening on AMR and a round table at the World Health Summit 2024 to facilitate a political dialogue between the Hub’s non-governmental members and parliamentarians and government representatives on this important topic.

Right on time for the World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week in November 2024, we launched our latest Policy Brief on Antimicrobial Resistance, which distills the key findings from our fifth Catalyst Dialogue. This brief offers critical insights into the urgent need for stronger global action on AMR and explores effective strategies for tackling this growing threat, incl. through Germany’s international cooperation. A member of the AMR Community was invited as a technical expert to the Bundestag’s Subcommittee on Global Health.

Facilitating dialogue between political decision makers in parliament and the German Government and our non-governmental members is at the heart of what we do and we keep those decision makers regularly informed.

By way of preparing the new overarching Community theme we had a conversation with the BMZ-unit on Global Health Policy and Financing on global health and conflict-affected settings. In particular the Global Mental Health Community shared their insights into their members’ activities in this field.

In March 2024, the Global Health Hub implemented a survey among non-state actors as part of the mid-term review of the Global Health Strategy of the German Federal Government. On behalf of its members the Hub was invited to present the outcomes of the survey in a session of the Subcommittee on Global Health of the German Bundestag. To inform other subcommittee hearings, our Hub Communities on Global Health & Migration and on Global Mental Health submitted written statements to the German Bundestag.

In May and June 2024, the Global Health Hub Germany's Steering Committee consisting of 16  members from the Hub's eight stakeholder groups was elected by the Hub members groups for a two-year term.

At the end of 2024, the Global Health Hub Germany is proud to count over 400 members that are actively engaged across our twelve Hub Communities. These communities bring diverse sectors and stakeholders together to exchange perspectives, discuss ideas and develop joint solutions. In 2024, our Hub Communities made significant strides in shaping the global health landscape.

The Community on Global Mental Health engaged with policymakers by submitting a statement on Climate Change and Mental Health to the German Parliament's Subcommittee on Global Health and developing this further into a policy brief which includes existing guidelines and examples of best practices. This initiative sparked an international collaboration with Connecting Climate Minds at Imperial College.

In addition, three other Communities released Community Papers: The Hub Community Non-communicable Diseases (NCD) published a paper on Global Brain Health, the Hub Community Global Health & Migration published Prioritising migrants and refugees in the global health discourse; and Indoor Air Quality for Protection Against Pandemics was launched by the Hub Community on Pandemic Prevention and Biosecurity.

The NCD Community Manager presented the Brain Health paper and the disproportionate impact of brain health on women at the “Women in Global Health” network event in Berlin. Dr. Antonella Santuccione Chadha from the Women’s Brain Health Foundation complemented this with insights into pioneering work on improving clinical research and trials for women.

Our Global Urban Health Community successfully organized a series of events that advanced the recommendations from its 2023 Policy Brief. The Community will work to consolidate the expertise gathered from the event series into a policy brief.

The subgroup on Feminist Global Health Policy from our Hub Community on Global Women’s Health held a webinar on “Feminist approaches to Global Health Policy: Perspectives, Pathways, and Germany’s Role”. The recording of the webinar is available on our YouTube Channel.

Wrapping up last year’s overarching annual theme on Planetary Health, a dedicated working group successfully concluded its discussions by publishing a Policy Brief on Sufficiency Health-wise: Sustainable Approaches to Health.

We officially launched the next Annual Theme of our Hub Communities, “Global Health in Conflict Settings”, with a poster presentation of seven communities during the Global Health Talk. In January 2025, we look forward to a meeting of the Annual Theme Working Group that aims to lay out how the communities can take forward the work on this pressing global health challenge.

The Hub Communities’ engagement and collaboration was made much easier by the launch of our virtual Hub Collaboration Space in June 2024. This new virtual platform provides a space to network, discuss, collaborate, and develop targeted solutions for global health. The new marketplace feature enhances the Hub members experience by offering one place for global health events, projects, and job opportunities, making it easier for members to stay connected and informed.

On 5 and 6 December 2024, the Global Health Hub Germany hosted its annual flagship conference, the Global Health Talk, at the Conference Center of the Federal Ministry of Health. The conference brought together more than 170 key stakeholders from the German global health landscape and international health experts: We were delighted to welcome our members, external experts and representatives from global health initiatives and institutions from fellow EU countries and from around the world.

Apart from the rich discussions on pressing global health issues, the Global Health Talk provided many opportunities for networking and exchange: An early-bird matchmaking event allowed participants on Thursday morning to get to know the work of several global health organizations, institutions, and foundations, while the evening quiz-night closed the first day of the Global Health Talk in an entertaining way. The Hub Communities showcased the diversity and expertise of our members to external global health actors, opening the new annual theme for discussion.

With the Global Health Talk in December, we finished strong, preparing to continue to work with you for continued impact in 2025.