Dr. Nouzha Skalli, Moroccan Minister of Social Development, Family and Solidarity chaired the Fourth Plenary Session which addressed the theme of “Arab Women and the Health Dimension of Sustainable Development”. Opening the session, Dr. Skalli emphasised the importance of such a theme which is related to one of the major objectives of UN's Millennium Development Goals. This objective, she said, represents a sine-qua-non for sustainable and comprehensive development, in general and human development, in particular. The speaker added that consecrating women's right to health requires the development of reproduction health, the promotion of medical research and the protection of women against certain social behaviours which may hinder their promotion such as violence and school drop- out. The Minister insisted on the importance of the evaluation of health systems in Arab countries in order to identify the obstacles which prevent women from enjoying their right to health. Taking the floor, Dr. Ali Ahmed Medhouani (Yemen) presented a paper where he highlighted the tight links which exist among certain objectives of the Millennium and which are in direct connection to health. He noticed that the promotion of preventive health is a fundamental condition for the consecration of the right to health, arguing that access to good quality health services, the dissemination of health culture, and the training of skilled medical staff are a must. Dr. Medhouani also explained that the deterioration of women's health situation in Arab societies is related, in particular, to malnutrition, an inappropriate management of health services, and armed conflicts. Moreover, Dr. Medhouani mentioned that women's health indicators are very low in rural areas, which requires additional efforts in this field as well as the consolidation of the decentralisation of health services. On her part, Dr. Rana Khatib (Palestine) underscored the need to determine the relationship between women's health and sustainable development, so that health policies would not be secluded from reality. She called for strengthening women's protection against those social practices which deprive women from their right to health. Dr. Khatib also stressed the need to improve the quality of health services, to land more interest to the psychological aspect of women's health, to set up health policies in harmony with the other social and economic policies.
