Global health is increasingly central to Europe’s prosperity, resilience and security. Yet its strategic importance is not always reflected in European policy and investment decisions. 

Too often, global health is viewed primarily through a development lens, rather than as a vital investment in Europe’s security, resilience and prosperity. That distinction is no longer tenable. Today’s greatest challenges ignore borders. Fragile health systems, infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance create risks that affect Europe itself. Covid-19 demonstrated how quickly a local health crisis can become a global economic and geopolitical shock. Drug-resistant pathogens, climate-related disease spread and pandemic risk are looming.

Strong health systems are the foundation of well-functioning societies, robust economies and lasting stability. They shape whether people can work, whether countries can respond to crises and whether communities can withstand future shocks. Ultimately, they underpin Europe’s strength, competitiveness, security and prosperity.

The European Roundtable for Global Health is a high-level forum bringing together leaders from politics and business to strengthen support for global health as a strategic investment in Europe’s future. The initiative is supported by two research institutes, the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) and Economist Enterprise, and two advocacy initiatives, Resilient Action Network International (rani) and the Danish Alliance for Global Health.

The Roundtable’s distinctive contribution is to broaden the circle of leaders involved in discussions on global health. Alongside global health experts and practitioners, it will bring together leaders from politics, business and academia whose decisions shape Europe’s wider priorities.

The Roundtable will convene senior leaders at key moments in the European policy cycle and contribute analysis and practical recommendations to inform discussions on Europe's future priorities and investments. Through dialogue and engagement across sectors, it will help ensure that global health is considered alongside broader questions of resilience, security and competitiveness.

This ambition ties directly into The Health Dividend agenda: ensuring that political and economic decision-makers outside the health sector better understand the value of investing in health.