This country cooperation strategy (CCS) outlines how the World Health Organization (WHO) will work with the Lao People’s Democratic Republic over... the next five years (2024–2028), supporting the implementation of the five-year health sector development plans and the Health Sector Reform Strategy 2021–2030 to attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
The Lao People’s Democratic Republic experienced substantial economic growth in the 30 years prior to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, contributing to reduced poverty and significant progress toward the SDGs. However, the COVID-19 pandemic brought this development to a halt. It was anticipated that the COVID-19 recovery and the tremendous population growth in recent years would provide opportunities for a shift toward more sustainable and inclusive development in the years ahead. In 2023, however, the contrary was the case. Rural residents, including many ethnic minorities, continued to face marginalization because of limited access to education, health care and economic opportunities.
Despite the challenges of COVID-19 and other disease outbreaks, the country has made significant improvements in health. Nonetheless, progress has been uneven and not everyone has benefited from these achievements. In the mountainous region, many people lack access to quality health care because of the unequal distribution of well-trained health-care workers. Preventable deaths due to poor-quality health care for children and newborns, infants and mothers remain a concern, as do communicable diseases such as sexually transmitted infections and tuberculosis. The increasing burden of noncommunicable diseases and the health impact of worsening climate change further heighten the need for strengthened and resilient health systems, which are at risk due to an underfunded health sector and weak economy.
This CCS aims to address remaining and future challenges as well as health needs while creating an impact that is sustainable. It identifies three strategic priorities and nine deliverables (Table 1) to support the attainment of the national vision of Health for all by all, as articulated in the 9th Health Sector Development Plan 2021–2025. It contributes to the country’s goals to achieve universal health coverage, graduate from least developed country status by 2026 and attain SDGs by 2030.
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The global emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is posing a threat to human health. Putting resources into the containment ...ibute-to-highlight medbox">of AMR – including surveillance – is one of the highest-yield investments a country can make to mitigate its impact. In 2015, WHO launched the Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS), the first global collaborative effort to foster AMR surveillance in bacteria causing acute infections. As of December 2018, 71 countries are enrolled in GLASS. The aim of this report is to document participation efforts and outcomes across these countries, and highlight differences and constraints identified to date. This report follows on from the first GLASS Report – Early implementation 2016-17, published in January 2018, and drawing on data from GLASS first data call in 2017.
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The development of this draft Proposed programme budget 2022–2023 comes at a unique moment for WHO. The world is in ...hlight medbox">the grip of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and faces health, social and economic consequences on an unprecedented scale. Although it is not known when the COVID-19 pandemic will end, recent encouraging vaccine results, in addition to the examples of countries that have achieved good results through public health measures, hold out the prospect of better days ahead. The full impact of the pandemic cannot yet be determined. But whatever its implications, the Secretariat will rise to the challenge and is ready to adapt so that it is fully equipped to support Member States for any eventuality in the future – to make sure that the world will never again have to face this kind of crisis.
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The World Health Organization's fourth Country Cooperation Strategy 2022-2026 is an outcome of a consultative process with inputs from ..."attribute-to-highlight medbox">the Ministry of Health, various agencies in the health sector, and other relevant stakeholders. It has been developed to provide strategic direction and support toward achieving the priorities of the Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini.
It is designed to support the strengthening of health systems and services toward the attainment of Universal Health
Coverage (UHC) and the Sustainable Development Goals targets. The CCS 2022-2026 also presents the collaborative
agenda between the Kingdom of Eswatini and the three levels of WHO, aligns with the strategic priorities of WHO’s
13th General Programme of Work (2019 – 2025), as well as Eswatini’s United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2021-2025
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A WHO guide to inform & harmonize national & international pandemic preparedness and response
The main updates from ...hlight medbox">the 2013 interim guidance are:
Alignment with other relevant United Nations policies for crisis and emergency management, and
Inclusion of the significant development in recent years of the strategies for pandemic vaccine response during the start of a pandemic.
The guide is available in English, Arabic, Chinese, French, Spanish and Russian
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The WHO Regional Office for Europe has established the Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative in more than half the countries in ...tribute-to-highlight medbox">the Region for routine monitoring of the policy response to the emerging obesity epidemic. The aim of the Initiative is to measure trends in overweight and obesity in children aged 6.0–9.9 years to get a clear understanding of the epidemic and to allow inter-country comparisons. This document outlines the common protocol agreed for use in the Initiative.
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The ERF provides WHO staff with essential guidance on how the Organization manages the assessmen...t, grading and response to public health events and emergencies with health consequences, in support of Member States and affected communities. The ERF adopts an all-hazards approach and it is therefore applicable in all acute public health events and emergencies.
This version (2024) of the WHO ERF has been developed following extensive consultation across the three levels of the Organization and response experiences over the last five years of emergency response. Key areas have been updated to improve the accountability, predictability, timeliness and effectiveness of WHO’s response to emergencies.
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The Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Implementation Framework 2018-2027 (KCSAIF) has been developed to provide a guide to various innovative and tra...nsformative initiatives and best practices that will strive to address challenges brought about by climate change. It is envisioned to ensure increased agricultural productivity and sustainably build resilience of the national agricultural systems.
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Rabies is entirely preventable, and vaccines, medicines, tools and technologies have long been available to prevent people from dying of dog-mediat...ed rabies. Nevertheless, rabies still kills about 60 000 people a year, of whom over 40% are children under 15, mainly in rural areas of economically disadvantaged countries in Africa and Asia. Of all human cases, up to 99% are acquired from the bite of an infected dog.
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The Vision 2020 is a reflection of our aspiration and determination as Rwandans, to construct a united<.../span>, democratic and inclusive Rwandan identity, after so many years of authoritarian and exclusivist dispensation. We aim, through this Vision, to transform our country into middle - income nation in which Rwandans are healthier, educated and generally more prosperous. The Rwanda we seek is one that is united and competitive both regionally and globally. To achieve this, the Vision 2020 identifies six interwoven pillars, including good governance and an efficient State, skilled human capital, vibrant private sector, world class physical infrastructure and modern agriculture and livestock, all geared towards prospering in national, regional and global markets.
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The WHO CIA List should be used as a reference to help formulate and prioritize risk assessment and risk management strategies ...for containing antimicrobial resistance. The WHO CIA List supports strategies to mitigate the human health risks associated with antimicrobial use in food-producing animals and has been used by both public and private sector organizations. The list helps regulators and stakeholders know which types of antimicrobials used in animals present potentially higher risks to human populations and how use of antimicrobials might be managed to minimize antimicrobial resistance of medical importance. The use of the WHO CIA List, in conjunction with the OIE list of antimicrobials of veterinary importance (1) and the WHO Model Lists of Essential Medicines (2) , will allow for prioritization of risk management strategies in the human sector, the food animal sector, inagriculture (crops) and horticulture, through a coordinated multisectoral One Health approach.
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The Country Cooperation Strategy is the World Health Organization’s corporate framework developed in response to a country’s needs ..."attribute-to-highlight medbox">and priorities. The 2022–2025 CCS is the fourth for WHO in Sierra Leone. It is a medium-term strategic document that defines a broad framework for WHO’s work, at all levels, with the Government of Sierra Leone and all health partners for the next four years. This document is guided by the country’s major policy and strategy documents including the 2020 National Health and Sanitation Policy (NHSP); the 2021–2025 National Health Sector Strategic Plan (NHSSP); and the 2019–2023 National Medium-term Development Plan (NMTDP). The current CCS also reflects the broad priorities of WHO as outlined in its Thirteenth General Programme of Work (2019–2023, extended to 2025) with a focus on improving access to universal health coverage, protecting people from health emergencies, and improving people’s health and well-being. The CCS priorities are also in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) in Sierra Leone and will contribute to attaining the country's SDG targets
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Public health emergencies, including pandemics, highlight the need for health systems and services that are prepared, resilient and ready to respon...d to health security threats. Endorsed by Member States in 2023, the Asia Pacific Health Security Action Framework (APHSAF) is designed to engage multisectoral actors in health security, and to reflect the complex nature of current and future public health emergencies. The Framework presents six interconnected, multisectoral domains of work that together form a comprehensive, multi-hazard health security system — emphasizing the One Health approach. The Framework also supports progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals and universal health coverage while meeting the responsibilities and obligations of the International Health Regulations (2005).
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An estimated 1.3 billion people – or 16% of global population worldwide – experience a significant disability today. Persons with disabilities have the right to ...ht medbox">the highest attainable standard of health as those without disabilities. However, the WHO Global report on health equity for persons with disabilities demonstrates that while some progress has been made in recent years, the world is still far from realizing this right for many persons with disabilities who continue to die earlier, have poorer health, and experience more limitations in everyday functioning than others. These poor health outcomes are due to unfair conditions faced by persons with disabilities in all facets of life, including in the health system itself. Countries have an obligation under international human rights law to address the health inequities faced by persons with disabilities. Furthermore, the Sustainable Development Goals and global health priorities will not progress without ensuring health for all.
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his Framework begins with a desired future scenario and considers actions and interventions necessary to get there. It advocates for holistic view to address tuberculosis. ...highlight medbox">The Framework revisits challenges and actions in four layers: TB specific; challenges in health systems that influence TB care; challenges in sectors beyond health that determine TB; and overarching governance issues. Multisectoral action and accountability are embedded in the Framework. The Framework is based on the principles of people-centered care and system development.
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The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Biosafety and Biosecurity Initiative was launched by ...ighlight medbox">the Africa CDC in April 2019 with the aim of strengthening the African Union (AU) Member States’ biosafety and biosecurity systems and enabling them to comply with national and international requirements for biosafety and biosecurity including the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005), the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), and United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1540 and the multi-country Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA). The World Health Organization (WHO) Joint External Evaluation (JEE) and the Global Health Security Index report confirmed the known capacity gaps in biosafety and biosecurity among Africa Union Member (AU).
The regional consultations by Africa CDC conducted between 2019-2021 highlighted the deficiency or limited availability of standardized and regionally recognized training programs in the continent, limiting biosafety and biosecurity capacity building efforts in the region. In response, Africa CDC working with AU Member States developed a home grown, implementable and accessible professional training and certification program that is both recognized and endorsed by AU Member States. The Regional Training and Certification Program for Biosafety and Biosecurity Professionals, for African Biosafety and Biosecurity Professionals (RTCP-BBP) has four (4) areas of specialization, namely
Selection, Installation, Maintenance and Certification of Biological Safety Cabinets
Biorisk Management
Design and Maintenance of Facilities Handling High Risk Pathogens (Biocontainment Engineering)
Biological Waste management
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Mental health is critically important to everyone, everywhere. All over the world, mental health needs are high but responses are insufficient and inadequate. ...box">The World mental health report: transforming mental health for all is designed to inspire and inform better mental health for everyone everywhere. Drawing on the latest evidence available, showcasing examples of good practice from around the world, and voicing people’s lived experience, it highlights why and where change is most needed and how it can best be achieved. It calls on all stakeholders to work together to deepen the value and commitment given to mental health, reshape the environments that influence mental health, and strengthen the systems that care for mental health.
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Despite the considerable improvement in global health, millions of people still lack access to quality health services, including access to effective antimicrobial medicines, or are impoverished as ...a result of health spending. At the same time, antimicrobial resistance – a consequence of overuse and misuse of antimicrobials – is increasingly a barrier to accessing effective care. The declining effectiveness of antibiotics is driven by multiple factors, many of which can be addressed through well functioning primary health care. However, primary health care has not always had much attention in national health sector responses to
antimicrobial resistance, which often focus on tertiary care, laboratory detection and surveillance. The three pillars of primary health care (community engagement, front-line health services including primary care and essential public health, and multisectoral action on wider health determinants) are central not just to Universal Health Coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals, but also to an effective response to antimicrobial resistance.
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Together for One Health. Building on the momentum of increased collaboration, the WHO, FAO, OIE and...an> UNEP have developed a Strategic Framework for collaboration on antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This Framework reflects the joint work of the four organizations to advance a One Health response to AMR at the global, regional and country level. It broadly supports the implementation of the five pillars of the Global Action Plan on AMR, as well as strengthening global AMR governance.
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The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes the challenges countries face for maintaining their COVID-19 response while addressing competing pub...lic health challenges, conflicts, climate change and economic crises.
It remains critical for national programmes to continue to offer testing for COVID-19 in line with three main objectives: reduce morbidity and mortality through linkage to prompt care and treatment, reduce onward transmission and track the evolution of the epidemic and the virus
itself.
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