On November 5 and 6 the G7 Ministerial Meeting on Health was held in Milan. The meeting had an ambitious agenda, ranging from the impact of climate change on people’s health to antibiotic resistance.

According to the Italian Ministry of Health, hosting the summit on the occasion of the 2017 Italian G7 presidency, the meeting innovated in the way matters have been examined and discussed, by using a so called Delphi method based on the opinions of the world’s leading experts.

A number of satellite events have also taken place across the city, including a conference organized by police forces to address the cross-border fight against “pharmaceutical crime” in all its forms, identifying the critical factors and common responses. The conference focused on the strategies and international collaborations needed to crack down on counterfeit pharmaceutical products, as well as the import and on-line sales of unauthorized products.

Another satellite event focused on the employment of new technologies in the healthcare sector, with particular emphasis on sustainability. Antibiotic resistance has also been a key item on the agenda. Italy is among the countries in the world where deaths linked to antibiotic resistance are higher.

Italian authorities did not conceal that one of the hidden goals of the summit was for them to lobby for the relocation of the European Medicines Agency- EMA headquarters to Milan. The political battle among candidate cities is about to get more intense, as a decision is expected to be adopted before the end of November.

More information on the agenda and materials of the summit can be found here: http://www.g7italy.it/en.