About Philippe Douste-Blazy

A cardiologist and epidemiologist, Philippe Douste-Blazy became Professor of Public Health at the Faculty of Medicine in Toulouse before continuing his academic career in Paris at Paris V René Descartes University.

His research focuses on the prevention of atherosclerosis and familial hypercholesterolemia, the subject of his doctoral thesis defended in 1982, with recognition confirmed by his election to the New York Academy of Sciences in 1990.

• —Professor of Public Health in Toulouse and later at Paris V University.
• —Specialist in the prevention of atherosclerosis and familial hypercholesterolemia.
• —Member of the New York Academy of Sciences since 1990.

Elected Mayor of Lourdes, he initiated strong interfaith dialogue, illustrated by the historic reception of the Dalai Lama in 1993 alongside Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Jewish, and Muslim leaders.

As a Member of the European Parliament, he mobilized funding from the European Commission chaired by Jacques Delors, as well as national and regional funds, to renovate the hospitality facilities of the Lourdes Sanctuary and welcome sick pilgrims under dignified conditions.

• —Organization of an unprecedented interfaith meeting with the Dalai Lama in 1993.
• —Mobilization of European, national, and regional funds to modernize the Lourdes Sanctuary hospitality facilities.
• —Improved capacity to welcome tens of thousands of sick pilgrims each year.

Following the AZF factory explosion, Philippe Douste-Blazy secured the transfer of the 100-hectare site from Total for a symbolic euro, then obtained from Jacques Chirac the allocation of the adjacent 100 hectares owned by the Ministry of Defense.

He designed a 200-hectare campus dedicated to cancer research and secured the necessary public and private funding to turn it into a European center of excellence. To ensure long-term sustainability, he created the Toulouse Cancer Santé public-interest foundation in 2005 to support the Oncopole.

• —Relocation of the Claudius-Regaud Hospital with 100 beds dedicated to clinical cancer research.
• —Construction of a 25,000 m² INSERM center hosting 400 researchers.
• —Establishment of the Institute of Advanced Technologies in Life Sciences (CNRS) and industrial partners.
• —More than 6,200 people now work on the Oncopole campus.
• —Creation of the Toulouse Research Health Foundation in 2005 to fund local research.

Alongside Simone Veil, he co-founded Sidaction, a television fundraiser broadcast simultaneously on April 7, 1994, on seven channels (including TF1, France 2, and France 3), with Line Renaud and Pierre Bergé as co-patrons; the program attracted around 23 million viewers.

He involved non-governmental organizations in the fight against AIDS by implementing ambitious prevention policies: condoms priced at 1 franc, establishment of the first oral opiate distribution centers for heroin users, among others.

He defended in Parliament France's first bioethics law, enacted on July 29, 1994.

• —Establishment of a single price of 1 franc for condoms to remove a major barrier to prevention among young people.
• —Deployment of 5,000 methadone substitution treatment slots for drug users.
• —Adoption of France's first bioethics laws in 1994.

As Minister of Culture, he created the Heritage Foundation to support the preservation of unlisted local heritage sites and mobilize grassroots philanthropy. To democratize access to culture in disadvantaged neighborhoods, he launched the “29 Neighborhood Cultural Projects” initiative, funding local facilities and community-based actions. For the first time in France, he introduced free admission to the Louvre Museum on the first Sunday of every month.

• —Creation of the Heritage Foundation in 1995.
• —National “29 Neighborhood Cultural Projects” program to bring culture closer to communities.
• —Free admission to the Louvre Museum on the first Sunday of every month.

Upon returning to the Ministry of Health and Solidarity, Philippe Douste-Blazy led structural reforms aimed at modernizing the healthcare system. He contributed to the creation of the Haute Autorité de Santé and initiated health insurance reforms that continue to shape France's healthcare governance.

• —Creation of the Haute Autorité de Santé, guarantor of quality healthcare.
• —Health insurance reform to strengthen the system's sustainability.

From July 2006 onward, Philippe Douste-Blazy was deeply involved in the conflict between Hezbollah and the State of Israel, regularly attending the Lebanese Council of Ministers chaired by Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. Together with Jacques Chirac, he was responsible for UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which established a ceasefire and enabled the deployment of peacekeeping forces.

On July 24, 2006, Philippe Douste-Blazy organized a UN Security Council session dedicated to the issue of child soldiers. He elevated the issue to the highest political level. In 2007, he declared: “A child soldier is first and foremost a child. He is not a perpetrator, he is a victim. His place is not in a barracks but on the school benches.” This led to the signing of the Paris Commitments.

In September 2006, during the United Nations General Assembly, he founded UNITAID. This historic launch brought together a high-level global coalition including French President Jacques Chirac, Brazilian President Lula da Silva, Chilean President Ricardo Lagos, Prime Ministers Tony Blair (UK) and Jens Stoltenberg (Norway), as well as Presidents Denis Sassou-Nguesso (Congo-Brazzaville) and Bill Clinton, under the patronage of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

In the same year, building on President Chirac's call for the need to identify new sources of financing to combat extreme poverty, Philippe Douste-Blazy, together with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Chile, Brazil, and Spain, created the Leading Group on Innovative Financing, an expertise laboratory and a diplomatic instrument. The Leading Group is an informal network of voluntary stakeholders that currently brings together 66 States as well as numerous international organizations, non-governmental organizations, private foundations, and local entities dedicated to eradicating poverty and preserving global public goods (health, education, food security, climate, biodiversity, etc.).

The Leading Group aligns with the concept of a ‘global partnership' for development (SDG 17). Its objective is to create a privileged space for dialogue and the sharing of best practices on the various innovative solutions for financing sustainable development.

Drawing on the expertise of its members and a regular review of the most promising initiatives, it seeks to foster growing political mobilization in support of instruments that have proven their feasibility and effectiveness in several pilot countries.

• —Adoption of UN Resolution 1701 establishing a ceasefire in Lebanon.
• —Founding of UNITAID to improve global access to medicines.
• —Signing of the Paris Commitments against the use of child soldiers.
• —Creation of the international group on innovative financing (63 member countries).

In September 2006,. Philippe Douste-Blazy founded UNITAID at the United Nations General Assembly. UNITAID is an international organization that finances access to medicines worldwide and embodies the innovative financing solidarity model championed by Philippe Douste-Blazy. He was elected President of Unitaid one month later, a position he held until 2016.Learn more

Between 2008 and 2018, he served as Special Advisor on Innovative Financing for Development to the United Nations Secretary-General. In 2019, he launched the UNITLIFE fund, modeled after UNITAID, to combat chronic malnutrition. He was elected President of its Board of Directors.

• —1993: Knight of the Order of Malta
• —1996: Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters
• —2006: Commander of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
• —2017: Commander of the Brazilian Order of the Southern Cross
• —2012: Knight of the Order of the Legion of Honour
• —2016: Commander of the Royal Norwegian Order.