Contextualising the WHO Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement in Norway invites to a reflection for decolonising research
Abstract Migrants and displaced persons are ubiquitously present, yet there is insufficient evidence and strategies to provide sustainable, equitable healthcare to these populations globally. Migration and health research has primarily been led by researchers in the Global North (GN), resulting in s...
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BMC
2025-03-01
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| Series: | International Journal for Equity in Health |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-025-02410-9 |
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| author | Esperanza Diaz Pierina Benavente |
| author_facet | Esperanza Diaz Pierina Benavente |
| author_sort | Esperanza Diaz |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Migrants and displaced persons are ubiquitously present, yet there is insufficient evidence and strategies to provide sustainable, equitable healthcare to these populations globally. Migration and health research has primarily been led by researchers in the Global North (GN), resulting in selective focus that can pose challenges in prioritizing socially relevant questions, and framing migration as a geographically fragmented problem without globally implementable solutions. This power disbalance has recently been termed “colonialisation of research”. The WHO, through an equitable process including the GN and Global South (GS), released the “Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement” (Agenda) in 2023 to strengthen globally fair research and translate priorities into policy and practice. WHO invites all countries to contextualise the Agenda´s core research themes and identify national gaps and priorities. With this purpose, the National Research Network for Migration and Health held a workshop in Bergen, Norway, in April 2024. The Norwegian priorities were compared to those from the WHO Agenda and discussed in light of decolonisation of research. Norwegian research priorities align with the WHO Agenda but differ in focus due to national context. Contextualizing the WHO Agenda to specific countries, such as Norway, highlights the need for local relevance while addressing global inequities in research and can, unintentionally, maintain the unresolved challenge of colonialism in research. Future research should critically examine the epistemological and ideological underpinnings of migration and health research to ensure equitable outcomes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-11e165425e3244edab4b25d61e4e1911 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1475-9276 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal for Equity in Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-11e165425e3244edab4b25d61e4e19112025-08-20T02:59:23ZengBMCInternational Journal for Equity in Health1475-92762025-03-012411710.1186/s12939-025-02410-9Contextualising the WHO Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement in Norway invites to a reflection for decolonising researchEsperanza Diaz0Pierina Benavente1Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, University of BergenDepartment of Global Public Health and Primary Care, University of BergenAbstract Migrants and displaced persons are ubiquitously present, yet there is insufficient evidence and strategies to provide sustainable, equitable healthcare to these populations globally. Migration and health research has primarily been led by researchers in the Global North (GN), resulting in selective focus that can pose challenges in prioritizing socially relevant questions, and framing migration as a geographically fragmented problem without globally implementable solutions. This power disbalance has recently been termed “colonialisation of research”. The WHO, through an equitable process including the GN and Global South (GS), released the “Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement” (Agenda) in 2023 to strengthen globally fair research and translate priorities into policy and practice. WHO invites all countries to contextualise the Agenda´s core research themes and identify national gaps and priorities. With this purpose, the National Research Network for Migration and Health held a workshop in Bergen, Norway, in April 2024. The Norwegian priorities were compared to those from the WHO Agenda and discussed in light of decolonisation of research. Norwegian research priorities align with the WHO Agenda but differ in focus due to national context. Contextualizing the WHO Agenda to specific countries, such as Norway, highlights the need for local relevance while addressing global inequities in research and can, unintentionally, maintain the unresolved challenge of colonialism in research. Future research should critically examine the epistemological and ideological underpinnings of migration and health research to ensure equitable outcomes.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-025-02410-9Health equityHealth research policyKnowledge managementMigrationNorway |
| spellingShingle | Esperanza Diaz Pierina Benavente Contextualising the WHO Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement in Norway invites to a reflection for decolonising research International Journal for Equity in Health Health equity Health research policy Knowledge management Migration Norway |
| title | Contextualising the WHO Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement in Norway invites to a reflection for decolonising research |
| title_full | Contextualising the WHO Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement in Norway invites to a reflection for decolonising research |
| title_fullStr | Contextualising the WHO Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement in Norway invites to a reflection for decolonising research |
| title_full_unstemmed | Contextualising the WHO Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement in Norway invites to a reflection for decolonising research |
| title_short | Contextualising the WHO Global Research Agenda on Health, Migration and Displacement in Norway invites to a reflection for decolonising research |
| title_sort | contextualising the who global research agenda on health migration and displacement in norway invites to a reflection for decolonising research |
| topic | Health equity Health research policy Knowledge management Migration Norway |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-025-02410-9 |
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