Nadda elected as Chairperson of 77th Session of WHO Regional Committee

The World Health Organisation kicked off its 77th session of the Regional Committee for Southeast Asia in New Delhi from October 7 to 9.

India's Minister of Health, JP Nadda, has been elected as the Chairperson of the 77th Session.

RC77 Seventy-seventh Regional Committee Session of WHO South-East Asia is the annual governing body meeting of WHO in the Region. The member nations include Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, India, Indonesia, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Timor-Leste.

Ministers of Health and delegates from the region's member states have flown to Delhi to deliberate upon key priorities and actions towards accessible public health.

One of the six WHO Regions, WHO South-East Asia is home to over a quarter of the world's population.

Committed to building a better, healthier future for the nearly two billion people in the Region, WHO is working with the 11 Member States to address persisting and emerging epidemiological and demographic challenges.

Razia Pendse, Chef de Cabinet of the WHO, outlined the challenges faced by the region. These include the growing burden of non-communicable diseases and mental health, reducing neonatal and under-5 mortality, the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance, and the continuing burden of tuberculosis.

In his inaugural speech, Nadda said, "Health transcends borders, necessitating a holistic and collaborative approach. By learning from each other's successes and challenges, we can enhance the resilience of health systems."

WHO's Regional Director for Southeast Asia, Saima Wazed, outlined the importance of having a regional roadmap. "The regional roadmap belongs to all our countries and all our peoples. We feel the duty to protect the weak, the vulnerable, the orphan child, the disabled, and the elderly with no family" she said.

Under the leadership of Saima Wazed, WHO SEARO's has proposed a technical programme and tactical approach priorities. These include emergency response and pandemic preparedness, resource mobilisation, climate change and universal health coverage, amongst others.

The meeting, spread over a course of three days will discuss on such issues in depth.

" Let us harness the power of collaboration, innovation, and solidarity to transform the health landscape of Southeast Asia and build a healthier and brighter future for all" Nadda said.