Flagship Initiatives: towards a healthier future
14 October 2024, Cairo, Egypt – An unprecedented series of natural disasters, prolonged conflicts and humanitarian emergencies have left the Eastern Mediterranean Region in desperate need of innovative approaches to build a healthier future for its 750 million inhabitants.
Expanding timely and equitable access to life-saving medicines and vaccines, building a more resilient health workforce and reducing morbidity, mortality and the social costs associated with substance use disorders are among the key priorities.
WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Dr. Hanan Balkhy has presented an ambitious regional vision, revolving around ensuring the best attainable level of health for everyone.
“The starting point to achieve this goal is to focus on three flagship initiatives that will serve as accelerators for the regional vision and its strategic operational plan, which in turn is based on the WHO’s Fourteenth General Programme of Work,” said Dr Balkhy.
The three flagship initiatives correspond to urgent regional priorities.
1. Expanding equitable access to medical products
Expanding access to quality medical products is a crucial step towards bridging the gap in health care access in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. Countries in the Region are heavily reliant on imports to obtain the medical products their people need, which means that much of the money spent on essential medical products – by individuals, governments and funders – benefits other economies, not countries of the Region.
This flagship initiative aims to enhance access