PAHO Foundation and CGF Collaborate to Advance Health and Wellness in Latin America

ATLANTA - May 4, 2017 - PRLog -- PAHO Foundation and The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF), a global, nonprofit association of leading companies in the retail and consumer packaged goods industry, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Through their strategic partnership, the Foundation and CGF agree to "foster innovation leading to improved health and wellness outcomes in Latin America."

"Harnessing the power of partnerships with this MoU being a key exemplar is the way forward when solving some of the region's greatest threats to health and wellness," PAHO Foundation President and CEO Dr. Jennie Ward-Robinson said. "Having the ability to work across sectors will enable PAHO Foundation and CGF to generate positive health outcomes throughout the region. On behalf of the Foundation, I look forward to collaborating with CGF's team of industry experts and believe that this integral partnership will foster additional opportunities benefitting people throughout Latin America."

The signing of the MoU symbolizes a shared commitment to build healthier, more secure futures for families and communities in the region. To accomplish this, the Foundation and CGF agree to shepherd the following principles on health and wellness stewardship:

-Health and wellness is the foundation of productive and prosperous societies and an important component of the economy;

-Society benefits from jointly leveraging the capabilities of the private sector in combination with those of government and non-governmental organizations to help people lead healthier lives;

-Health and wellness is a priority as is the need to promote innovation, including through public-private partnerships;

-The parties believe in sharing information and best practices that lead to promoting healthy lifestyles among all sectors of society; and

-Health and wellness in Latin America can be improved by: (i) building relationships, improving communications, and enhancing cooperation and coordination among public and private sector stakeholders; (ii) identifying health and wellness challenges in Latin America; (iii) investigating the causes of these challenges in Latin America; (iv) identifying, testing, and implementing potential solutions to health and wellness challenges in Latin America; and (v) mobilizing the resources needed to accomplish the foregoing.

Additionally, the Foundation and CGF recognize the unique ability both parties share in providing vital guidance and expertise during multi-stakeholder collaboration-making processes – the Foundation with its Foundation Technical Advisory Group (FTAG) built of leading scientists, researchers, and academics in global health and CGF with its External Advisory Council (EAC) of recognized, international health scholars and researchers.

"PAHO Foundation plays a critical role in improving public health across Latin America," CGF Managing Director Peter Freedman said. "Our partnership is an exciting opportunity for us to combine PAHO Foundation's expertise with the consumer industry's own unique capabilities - in the interests of our vision of empowered, healthy consumers everywhere. We look forward to working with PAHO Foundation on innovative solutions to the health and wellness challenges in the region."

The MoU is only the beginning of an ongoing partnership between the Foundation and CGF. The two agree to engage in an ongoing dialogue to identify opportunities to jointly mobilize public and private sector resources to improve health equity and help people in Latin America live healthier and more productive lives.

For more information on PAHO Foundation, visit www.pahofoundation.org.