Your Excellency Khaled Abdel Ghaffar,

Excellencies, dear colleagues and friends,

It is my great honour to welcome you to the opening ceremony of the COP27 Health Pavilion – and I’m sorry that I can’t be with you in person.

For the second year in a row, WHO and our partners are proud to host the Health Pavilion, to elevate the voice of the health community in climate discussions.

For too long, health has been the forgotten child of climate discussions.

That was until last year, when for the first time the United Kingdom included health in the COP programme as part of its presidency. 

We’re delighted that Egypt has followed that precedent by including health in the COP27 programme.

For this year’s health pavilion, we have collaborated with a group of talented artists who have created a unique sculpture in the shape of human lungs.

I thank the artists for this provocative work, which I hope will help to draw attention to the impact of air pollution and climate change on human health.

I also thank our partner the Wellcome Trust for its financial and technical support for the Health Pavilion, and for this sculpture.