As I address you today my heart is both joyful and heavy. I am joyful because after two years of virtual Regional Committees it gives me great pleasure to welcome many participants to the WHO Regional Office in person. Although we are now all well used to virtual meetings, nothing can fully replace face-to-face engagement.
But my heart is also heavy because of the terrible challenges affecting so many people in our Region – from multiple conflicts to the earthquake in Afghanistan, both chronic and acute food insecurity in the Horn of Africa, floods in Pakistan and the recent cholera outbreak in Syrian Arab Republic.

When I addressed you virtually last year, I said that I hoped it would be possible to meet face-to-face this year.
So I’m delighted to be here with you today.
The fact that we are once again able to meet in person is testament to how far you have all come in the fight against COVID-19.
It’s very pleasing to see that reported cases and deaths in the region are near their lowest since the pandemic began.
As I have said over the past few weeks, we have never been in a better position to end the COVID-19 pandemic as a global health emergency.