Dr Margaret Chan
Director-General of the World Health Organization
Excellencies, honourable ministers, distinguished delegates, colleagues in public health, ladies and gentlemen,
It is an honour, and a great pleasure, to participate in the opening ceremony for this Global Alcohol Policy Symposium. The large number of countries represented here today is a signal of the growing concern about the harmful use of alcohol, and growing determination to take action.
Health officials gave us a similar signal last year, when Thailand hosted a Global Alcohol Policy Conference. These events tell us that action at the policy level is needed.
They tell us that action is deeply desired by many governments, by many civil society organizations, and by the many millions of people around the world who have seen lives, families, careers, and communities devastated or destroyed by the harmful use of alcohol. > > > > Read More
