Health Policy www.thelancet.com Published online October 21, 2008 DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61558-5 1 Global public health: a scorecard

Global health is attracting an unprecedented level of interest. In this paper, we summarise recent trends and identify the unfi nished and new agendas in global public health. We propose a global public health scorecard as a simple way to assess progress and suggest actions by public health practitioners and their organisations for improving the eff ectiveness of public health. Although we fi nd many recent positive developments in global health, the potential for global cooperation and progress is still largely untapped. Compared with other components of development, health improvement should easily foster global cooperation; strong advocacy and political will are keys to continuing progress. We view global public health as a barometer of more general development. Our responses to the current health challenges are at the forefront of the global struggle for survival