1. Globalisation has fuelled impoverishment, ill health and marginalisation of the world’s poor and in its wake many of the human development gains for poor countries have been reversed. The powers of international monetary and trade institutions that drive the globalisation agenda and supersede policies of national governments such as the WTO, IMF and World Bank need to be checked in line with human rights and social development goals. Particular, agreements such as TRIPS pose a dire threat for the health of millions of people by making it legal for access to live saving drugs to be blocked as with HIV/AIDS/STIs/TB. Declining health status under structural adjustment programmes provides ample evidence of the costs for humanity as national and government capabilities have been eroded 2. Poverty, unemployment, hunger and ill health constitute a vicious cycle. The greatest challenge for breaking this cycle is in the very limited resources available to developing countries exacerbated by the burden of debt servicing. Real poverty alleviation requires cancellation of this debt by all institutions, IMF, World Bank and other creditor countries, coupled with a commitment from beneficiary governments to channel these savings toward social, health, and educational services. 3. The Primary Health Care (PHC) Approach as encapsulated by the Alma Ata declaration of 1978 needs to be reaffirmed as the set of guiding principles for revitalising the health systems of developing countries. This includes the provision of accessible and affordable basic services essential for good health including clinical care, water, sanitation, housing, energy and education. 4. Health services must be strengthened through new investments in infrastructure, adequate supplies and resources, including appropriate support of health personnel. Formal agreements for compensation are required to limit the active recruitment of health personnel from developing countries and to offset the costs of training personnel who have and continue to migrate to the North. 5. A focus on equity is required in the development of all health programmes and interventions. Marginalised and disempowered groups should be targeted for priority in the policies and plans of international and national initiatives to improve health, including: women and children, people with disabilities, and indigenous peoples. 6. Women and girls bear a disproportionate burden of poverty and ill health as a result of entrenched gender bias and driven by commercial interests. Improving women’s health status requires the implementation of programmes marked by an integrated approach and intersectoral collaboration including attention to economic empowerment, and gender inequities that spur the current unacceptable levels of violence against women. 7. International efforts to support greater funding for and implementation of HIV/AIDS/STIs/TB interventions need to incorporate ways of strengthening health systems, ensuring sustainability and promoting equity. International strategies must avoid vertical quick-fix solutions and include attention to prevention, reduction in transmission, care and treatment of all HIV positive people 8. Children’s health and particularly the welfare of AIDS orphans needs urgent attention and must include social grants, free access to education, health care and other avenues of socio-economic development. Civil society should be supported in its role to ensure the welfare of children infected and affected by the AIDS disaster. 9. Adoption of adequately resourced and comprehensive programmes must be fast tracked to control communicable diseases such as measles, malaria, intestinal infections, HIV/AIDS and acute respiratory infections, which are leading causes of death in children 10. The effective role of civil society in health and development must be enhanced through support with resources and investment. Community involvement in health planning, monitoring and evaluation can be optimised with development of critical indicators for monitoring and evaluation.