Global public health law: implications for development policy

This chapter provides an overview of the changing landscape for global public health law and its relationship to development policy. As a key determinant of productivity, security and wellbeing, health holds a pivotal place in global development policy. Health appropriately occupies a central position in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. A ‘right to health’ is now widely accepted as a core human right, entrenched in international law, state constitutions and domestic legislation to varying degrees. As a result, attention has shifted to implementation of this right, spurring careful reflection on the role of international and domestic institutions, as well as their effectiveness in delivering key development targets. Significant challenges remain, however, with institutional coordination, national sovereignty and governance. This engenders critical examination of how legal frameworks can enable public health systems to achieve positive outcomes and advance broad social justice aims, such as universal health coverage.