The WHO Centre for Health Development (WHO Kobe Centre – WKC) is celebrating its 30th anniversary with the production of a report and video showcasing its achievements over three decades with anecdotes from current and past luminaries, partners and interns.
This global research centre is an outposted office of WHO Headquarters based in the city of Kobe, Japan. It was created in August 1995 following an innovative proposal to WHO by the Governor of Hyogo Prefecture and the Mayor of Kobe City to contribute to international health development. The WHO Kobe Centre became a symbol of hope and regeneration following the devastating Great Hanshin Awaji earthquake in January 1995, and for 30 years, has fulfilled its dual mission of global health work and contributions to the local community.
Throughout the decades, a hallmark of WKC’s work has been on anticipated and emerging health and development issues, and translating social and technological innovations to and from Japan, sharing lessons learned with other countries and settings facing similar challenges.
From the beginning, WKC was renowned for convening global conferences and symposia in Kobe on issues such as urban health, ageing societies, women and health, tobacco control and violence and health. It hosted the Knowledge Network on Urban Settings (KNUS), a research hub of the Commission on Social Determinants of Health; developed the Urban Health Equity Assessment and Response Tool (Urban HEART) for measuring health inequities within and between cities; and became synonymous with health emergency preparedness and response programmes.
Since 2016, the Centre has published over 250 research reports and publications to produce evidence for informed policy making on healthy ageing, sustainable financing for universal health coverage including long-term care, measuring unmet health and social care needs, and health emergencies and disaster risk management. Central to its success has been its collaborative research and partnerships with 159 global and local institutions over the past decade.
These achievements would not have been possible without the sustained support of the Kobe Group (Hyogo Prefecture, Kobe City, Kobe Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Kobe Steel Ltd.), and the support and engagement of the Hyogo and Kobe communities.