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17 October 2024
Doha, Qatar
Your Excellencies,
Media colleagues,
Distinguished guests,
I would like to welcome you to this press conference.
We have just concluded the 71st session of the Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean, which was held from 14 to 17 October 2024, and hosted by the State of Qatar.
Before I start, I would like to thank Qatar for their generous hospitality and excellent organization.
I also thank their Excellencies the ministers of health, heads of delegations and delegates for their dedication, wisdom and knowledge. We have enjoyed exceptionally rich and productive discussions throughout the past four days.
The Regional Committee session was held against the backdrop of emergencies that unfortunately affect half of the countries of the Region. We are all acutely aware that precious lives are being lost every minute.
From the 12-month war in the Gaza Strip to conflicts in Lebanon, Sudan and Yemen and prolonged crises in Afghanistan, Somalia and other countries – our Region is facing unimaginable and unacceptable tragedy and suffering.
The theme of the session, “Health Beyond Borders”, reflected the strong commitment of all our Member States to work together to ensure that every single person in the Region can enjoy their fundamental human rights to life and health – no matter their location, nationality, economic or social affiliation.
The Regional Committee is WHO’s main governing body in the Eastern Mediterranean. This annual session is an essential opportunity for leaders and policy-makers from Member States to join partner organizations and WHO experts to consider key issues.
Naturally, much of our time was spent discussing emergencies and other challenges, but we were also able to celebrate numerous successes in every country, and across many different areas of public health – from the tremendous growth of our regional Healthy Cities programme to some world-beating achievements in tackling communicable diseases such as hepatitis C, leprosy and malaria.
Coming together for these annual sessions is a great chance to share experiences, inspiration, ideas and best practices.
This was my first Regional Committee since I became Regional Director in February.
I was pleased to be able to present WHO’s major strategic plans for our work in the Region, including a new regional strategic operational plan and three flagships initiatives.
The strategic operational plan will guide our work with countries for the next four years, while the flagship initiatives will help to accelerate progress in three critical areas: expanding access to essential medicines, vaccines and medical products; investing to improve the production, employment and retention of health workforce in the Region; and stepping up public health action on substance use.
I am delighted that Member States voiced their strong support for these plans, and they also provided much wise advice and feedback.
We also discussed technical papers on four major health issues:
a new operational framework for addressing physical trauma in humanitarian settings;
a new regional action plan to enhance mental health and psychosocial support in emergencies;
action to tackle the deadly threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the Region; and
harnessing the power of digital technology to improve to health information systems and health care.
And we had a very full programme of other discussion, briefings, side events and special events.
I encourage you to look at the documents on the Regional Committee website. There is a wealth of information there.
Our big meeting has concluded successfully, but our work is just beginning. I am looking forward to pushing on with the technical agenda endorsed by the Committee.
So we say goodbye to our friends, colleagues and partners today – but we will be in touch with them again soon, and we will work closely together to make our shared vision a reality.
Thank you.
23 May 2024
Your Royal Highness Princess Muna Al Hussein,
Dr Pamela Cipriano, President of the International Council of Nurses,
Ms Sandra Oyarzo Torres, President of the International Confederation of Midwives, Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am pleased to join you today. Nurses and midwives are dear to my heart and high on my agenda.
They are vital components of multidisciplinary health teams, strong health systems and healthy communities.
As the largest cadre of health workers, nurses and midwives are drivers of healthy societies and healthy economies. Without them, we cannot achieve universal health coverage, health security, or the health-related Sustainable Development Goals.
A key lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic is that we need to invest more in strengthening our health workforce.
When governments invest in training, employing and retaining nurses and midwives, they alleviate poverty and enhance social and economic prosperity, gender equality, social cohesion and peace.
Unfortunately, we are not investing enough in the health workforce globally nor in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.
Nurses and midwives make up more than half the health workforce in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, but we still face shortages. Our Region accounts for almost 18% of the global shortage of nurses, and if current trends continue, we will lack 1.2 million nurses by 2030.
That would impact every country of the Region.
Without more well-trained nurses and midwives, we cannot tackle the rise in communicable and noncommunicable diseases effectively. We cannot promote healthy lives for all.
WHO is trying to turn the tide. Fostering cooperation among countries. Enhancing training. Making sure that all health professionals are protected and valued.
Last year, WHO Member States meeting in our Regional Committee called for accelerated action to invest and empower the health workforce.
And now, as WHO Regional Director I am developing a flagship initiative to strengthen the health workforce in the Region. The aim is to build a regional health workforce for the future – one that is agile and prepared to confront a changing public health landscape. We need to look at future scenarios to guide the transformation in health professionals’ education, employment policies and investments.
I count on all WHO Member States and partners to work together to take this agenda forward.
We can create conditions for collaboration and build on the comparative strengths of different partners. We need to address the development of both individuals and institutions.
We must ensure that nurses and midwives are respected, enjoy a conducive working environment and have a more prosperous future.
Ultimately, we will all reap the benefits.
6 June 2024
My dear friends and partners, Dr Moeti and Dr Kluge, Colleagues,
I am delighted to join you today to celebrate our colleagues’ achievement in completing the Pathways to Health Leadership for Transformation programme.
In doing so, we are also celebrating another example of successful collaboration among our three regions.
As I think you all know, I am making action to strengthen the health workforce in the Eastern Mediterranean one of three flagship initiatives for my new term, so I am particularly pleased that WHO is walking the talk and investing in our own workforce.
Improving the leadership capacities of our staff is critical. We want them to bring the best out in their teams, boost cooperation with partners and better influence the global health agenda. To do that, we need to challenge, inspire and empower them.
I would like to thank Dr Moeti, and her colleagues for initiating this programme and sharing it with other regions. This first tri-regional cohort builds on previous successful collaborations between AFRO and EURO.
EMRO colleagues who joined this cohort have provided very positive feedback. They appreciated the chance to spend quality time with colleagues from other regions and exchange ideas and experiences.
I hear many other EMRO colleagues are now interested in joining future cohorts.
Let me congratulate everyone who successfully completed the programme. You have shown dedication, determination and perseverance. It cannot have been easy to juggle this additional commitment alongside your onerous workloads, but I am sure you will agree it was worth it.
Once again, I thank my fellow regional directors and colleagues, and I look forward to further graduation ceremonies.
Let us keep up the good work together.
