Implementation of the Minamata Convention in the health sector: challenges and opportunities (2017)

Mercury and its compounds are among the top priority chemicals of major public health concern globally. The Sixty-seventh World Health Assembly welcomed the adoption of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, which aims to protect human health and the environment from mercury, and agreed priority action for ministries of health and WHO. The role of health ministries will be critical in activities related to protecting health from the negative impacts of mercury through implementation of the Convention.
This publication includes an analysis of the role of the health sector in, and the benefits expected from, the implementation of the Convention and the need for capacity-building to match its requirements. Implementation of the Convention globally is expected to result in significant benefits to public health, as well as related economic and social benefits, thus contributing to renewed sustainable development.