Tackling political and commercial determinants of health through policy and governance
3 November 2025
| Journal article
Overview
Global health, including human and planetary health, is increasingly shaped by political, commercial, and geopolitical forces that determine who benefits from policy, markets, and cooperation. Once viewed as a shared human concern, health now reflects power dynamics and structural inequities. Political determinants shape governance and participation; commercial ones reflect corporate influence; and geopolitical determinants embed these within global power structures. Together, these interactions exploit fragmented governance, fuel health nationalism, and deepen inequities. Addressing this landscape demands transformative governance: transparent yet strategic leadership, well-being-focused economics, accountability, informed public engagement and interdisciplinary leadership through effective public health diplomacy.
WHO Team
European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
Editors
Sandro Galea, Anna Gilmore, Alison Maassen, Caroline Costongs and Ilona Kickbusch
Copyright
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO