In Australia, Victoria‘s Minister for Tourism and Major Events Louise Asher and Minister for Health and Ageing David Davis have announced that Melbourne will host the 15th World Congress on Public Health (WCPH) in 2017 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC). Top competition for this event came from London and Barcelona.

In a statement, Asher said that the Congress, held every three to four years by the World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA), is expected to attract over 2000 public health researchers, academics, scientists, educators and policy makers to Melbourne over five days.

“The 2017 Congress holds a special significance as it will coincide with the Federation’s 50th anniversary and it is expected to inject approximately $11.2 million into the state’s economy,” she said. “This comes just a few months after we were notified that Melbourne will be the host city for another esteemed health-related event: the International Hepato-Biary Pancreatic Association World Congress 2020.”

Davis said that securing the Congress was a testament to Victoria’s strengths in its approach to public health. “The Congress will provide a platform for global knowledge exchange on key public health issues such as communicable diseases, immunisation and obesity and will allow us to showcase our world-leading public health programs and research to the world,” Mr Davis said.

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