Message from the Director-General MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL n May of this year, health ministers and leaders from around the world will gather in eneva for the final World Health Assembly of the century. This years World health report-Making a difference reviews the accomplishments and challenges in world health nd highlights their implications for WHOs approach, priorities and work in the years to come The world enters the 21st century with hope but also with uncer- tainty. Remarkable gains in health, rapid economic growth and unprecedented scientific advance -all legacies of the 20th century could lead us to a new era of human progress. But darker legacies bring uncertainty to this vision-and demand redoubled commitment. Regional conflicts have replaced the global wars of the first half of the 20th century as a source of continued misery Deep poverty remains all too prevalent. The sustainability of a healthy environment is still unproved.The Universal Declaration of Human Rights-now half a century old -is only a tantalizing promise for far too many of our fellow humans. The HIVIAIDS epidemic continues unchecked in much of the world and it warns us against complacency about other, still unknown, We can make a difference. those of us who commit our lives to improving health can help to make su Dr Gro harlem brundtland that hope will predominate over uncertainty in the century to come. Human health -and its influence on every aspect of life- is central to the larger picture. With vision, commitment and successful leadership, this report argues, the world could nd the first decade of the 21st century with notable accomplishments. Many of the worlds poor people would no longer suffer todays burden of premature death and excessive dis- ability, and poverty itself would thereby be much reduced Healthy life expectancy would increase for all Smoking and other risks to health would fade in significance. The financial burdens of medical needs would be more fairly shared, leaving no household without ac- cess to care or exposed to economic ruin as a result of health expenditure. And health systems would respond with greater compassion, quality and efficiency to the increasingly diverse demands they face. Progress in the 20th century points to the real opportunity for reaching these goalsMessage from the Director-General vii MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL I n May of this year, health ministers and leaders from around the world will gather in Geneva for the final World Health Assembly of the century. This year’s World health report – Making a difference reviews the accomplishments and challenges in world health and highlights their implications for WHO’s approach, priorities and work in the years to come. The world enters the 21st century with hope but also with uncer￾tainty. Remarkable gains in health, rapid economic growth and unprecedented scientific advance – all legacies of the 20th century – could lead us to a new era of human progress. But darker legacies bring uncertainty to this vision – and demand redoubled commitment. Regional conflicts have replaced the global wars of the first half of the 20th century as a source of continued misery. Deep poverty remains all too prevalent. The sustainability of a healthy environment is still unproved. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights – now half a century old – is only a tantalizing promise for far too many of our fellow humans. The HIV/AIDS epidemic continues unchecked in much of the world, and it warns us against complacency about other, still unknown, microbial threats. We can make a difference. Those of us who commit our lives to improving health can help to make sure that hope will predominate over uncertainty in the century to come. Human health – and its influence on every aspect of life – is central to the larger picture. With vision, commitment and successful leadership, this report argues, the world could end the first decade of the 21st century with notable accomplishments. Many of the world’s poor people would no longer suffer today’s burden of premature death and excessive dis￾ability, and poverty itself would thereby be much reduced. Healthy life expectancy would increase for all. Smoking and other risks to health would fade in significance. The financial burdens of medical needs would be more fairly shared, leaving no household without ac￾cess to care or exposed to economic ruin as a result of health expenditure. And health systems would respond with greater compassion, quality and efficiency to the increasingly diverse demands they face. Progress in the 20th century points to the real opportunity for reaching these goals. Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland