Vulnerable groups have called on UN Member states to ensure access to health services for all.
The UN High Level Meeting is expected to take place in New York from September 23.
Carolyne Njoroge from Partnership to Inspire, Transform and Connect the HIV Response (Pitch) has urged member states to commit to support key and vulnerable populations including those living with HIV, adolescent girls and young women.
She spoke on Friday during a stakeholders' meeting organised by Health NGOs Network in Nairobi.
“The UN HLM on Universal Health Coverage will adopt the political declaration on UHC on September 23, but the draft is unforgivably weak on the right to health and inclusion of key and vulnerable populations,” Njoroge said.
Njoroge said the civil society and the vulnerable populations especially the young people must be seen as key partners in the development, implementation and monitoring of national UHC plans in order to ensure access to all.
"We need to work together towards a legally and socially enabling environment for all people to access healthcare without stigma, discrimination, violence and criminalisation,” Ngoroge said.
“We must remove legal and policy barriers, and eliminate human rights violations commited against these groups with impunity.”
Njoroge said that criminalisation restricts the right to access to health services that all people are entitled to.
Giving examples, she noted that 68 countries currently criminalise same sex relationships while sex work is criminalised in 208 countries.
In addition, transgender people are criminalised and prosecuted in more than 57 countries, adolescent girls and young women have remained disadvantaged in accessing sexual and reproductive health services in many countries.
“We ask member states to speak up for and champion key and vulnerable populations' access to quality health services,” she said.
Njoroge said stigma, discrimination, violence and criminalisation of key and vulnerable populations has created major barriers to accessing healthcare services.
