With the recent change from the Millennium Development Goals to
the 17 new Sustainable Development Goals, the focus of the global
development agenda is expanding: there is attention on a broader set of
social determinants and, importantly, a specific sensitivity to equity, which could have
a substantial effect on health. Addressing social determinants is a cornerstone in the
National Department of Health’s Primary Health Care Re-engineering Strategy, and
an approach that is embedded in the country’s National Development Plan. However,
the translation of this policy commitment to programmatic action at different levels in
the health system and in partnership with other sectors remains elusive.DHE
