*Errors and omissions excepted (E&OE)
Chairperson, Honourable ministers, Representatives from Member States and partner agencies, Director-General of WHO, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Welcome to the 74th session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Western Pacific. We are delighted to see you all in person in Manila.
I would like to congratulate and thank the incoming Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and Rapporteurs for agreeing to serve in these important roles.
2023 has been a year of celebration for WHO as we mark our 75th anniversary. In three quarters of a century much has changed in the Western Pacific Region, and I am glad to say much of it for the better.
More babies are celebrating their birthdays, and life expectancy has increased by some 30 years.
Smallpox has vanished, and we are this close to ending polio. Deaths from malaria have plummeted.
Vaccination is reaching an impressive 93% of children. And we are celebrating more disease eliminations such as the elimination of lymphatic filariasis in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, which we recognized earlier today. I encourage each of you to walk through the photo exhibition, just outside the Conference Hall, it provides a snapshot of our joint achievements since the Organization’s founding in 1948.
Our legacy has improved the lives of families, communities and countries, yet we recognize we are only as strong as our foundation. We have recommitted to work more intensively at the grassroots level, hand-in-hand with countries, communities and partners, and we are more focused than ever on achieving results and impact in the countries on our road towards health for all.
While 2023 has been a year of celebration, it has also been a year of hard work, challenges and transition. In August 2022, the Director-General asked me to step in as Officer-In-Charge, and this past March the Regional Committee asked me – upon nomination by the Director-General – to serve as Acting Regional Director until a new Regional Director takes office next February, following this week’s nomination. I accepted this new challenge and I am grateful to Member States of the Region and to the D-G for their trust. Thanks DG for your kind words earlier today.
Transitions are not easy, yet we have worked hard to ensure progress in this great Region where Member States are solidly committed to improved health outcomes and stronger and more resilient health systems as part of their sustainable development agenda, while working together to advance regional priorities and plans endorsed by the Regional Committee. The unity on health issues in this Region – and among Member States – is amazing.
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The Report of the Regional Director, which you have in front of you, shares the work of WHO in the Western Pacific from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023. It conveys how we have been working to address the health challenges of today and ensure a healthy future for the Region’s 1.9 billion people under the regional vision, which you adopted in 2019.
As you know, this vision sets out priorities for the work of WHO with Member States and partners. It is directly aligned with WHO’s global vision as well as the Sustainable Development Goals.
In this Region, we are specifically working to target the health challenges and opportunities of today – and those we are likely to encounter in the future – and to address the root causes of health inequities. The vision’s four thematic priorities, as you can see on the slide, address the critical issues of today and tomorrow.
The strategic direction of our work is centred on making health systems more resilient and reorienting them towards primary health care which lays the foundation to achieve universal health coverage, and also ensures the sustainability of health emergency preparedness and response.
This work will be greatly accelerated by the DG’s initiative to further strengthen country presence. I would like to thank Dr Tedros for supporting WHO in the Western Pacific through an additional US$ 18 million to set up 52 Core Predictable Country Presence positions in this Region.
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For more than three years, the COVID-19 pandemic has dominated the efforts of WHO and Member States.
On 5 May 2023, following the recommendations of the COVID-19 Emergency Committee, WHO declared an end to the pandemic’s status as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
We are forever indebted to the inspirational legions of health-care workers, researchers, policy-makers and others who have been at the forefront of the pandemic response and have been instrumental in reaching this milestone.
And thanks to the collective efforts across the Region, we fared relatively well. Compared to other regions, we were able to protect our communities and societies from the onslaught of the acute phase of the pandemic.
The pandemic provided a forceful reminder that health is intertwined with the economy and the success of societies. This knowledge and the hard lessons learnt are guiding the Region to ensure that health is an essential partner in sustainable development in the future, with primary health care central for the safeguarding of health and well-being of all members of society.
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The Region has shown progress and resilience in the face of challenges. Yet we are reminded that we still have much to accomplish. The Region is vulnerable to impacts of climate change, the increasing burden of noncommunicable diseases and threats of other public health emergencies. It also continues to be a hotspot for emerging diseases with pandemic potential.
To ensure organizational preparedness, integrity and the agility to achieve future goals, we have been looking inward at how we can develop and strengthen the WHO workplace to be a source of pride for everyone. A large part of our work has been directed towards this end.
We have accelerated the roll-out of the global Transformation initiative and have worked towards positive organizational and cultural changes to ensure a well-functioning, sustainable and respectful workplace that delivers high-quality work for the Member States of the Region. My aim is to hand over a sustainable, well-functioning and respectful workplace to the next Regional Director that you will nominate this week, in which colleagues feel appreciated and are happy to come to the office every morning.
We are seeing positive change internally, with zero tolerance for any inappropriate behaviour, wider awareness and engagement amongst colleagues on sexual misconduct and respect for policies as well as a commitment and respect for WHO policies on abusive behaviour and sexual misconduct, the Code of Ethics and Professional Behaviour and the WHO Values Charter. All of this enables us to be better prepared and drive impact for the countries we serve.
During the course of the week, we will give you more information and insight into these initiatives that have occupied a large part of our work. This is an important investment in the Regional Office and country offices because the staff is our greatest asset, and we have to do everything we can to create a positive and respectful environment for them to thrive.
Recently, we also signed a memorandum of understanding with the President of the Association of Former WHO Staff Members to recognize and institutionalize old partnerships and to acknowledge and harness the potential of retires and former staff to the work of WHO. Their experience and wisdom will help us further to achieve our goals.
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I thank Member States for their support and trust in me during my time in the Region. During such a challenging and celebratory period marking the Organization’s anniversary, the consideration and collegiality of representatives of the Region have made this work so rewarding and fruitful.
It has been a true privilege to be welcomed into this Region, and I have enjoyed meeting so many of you and hearing of the incredible and diverse work occurring across the Region.
I’d also like to thank the outgoing chairperson, Honourable Minister Bounfeng for all of his great support to the Regional Committee over the last year. I think we have asked more of him over this complicated 12 months than any other Chair before.
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Honourable ministers, distinguished delegates, as you can see, we have had a busy and productive year addressing the health challenges across the Region and driving the implementation of our shared commitments.
As we commemorate 75 years of WHO’s remarkable journey, we are reminded of the immense progress we have made together.
And in this important election year, I am sure that the Regional Director you nominate tomorrow will be up to the challenge of ensuring that WHO in the Western Pacific is in good stead to meet the challenges of the future.
On behalf of the Secretariat, I would like to thank you, our Member States, and our partners for your unwavering support and commitment to making the Western Pacific Region the healthiest and safest region in the world.
Thank you for your attention.