76th World Health Assembly begins in Geneva

Geneva (IANS) | The 76th World Health Assembly (WHO) began here. It focused on saving lives, driving health for all. Significantly, this year is the 75th anniversary of WHO. During the ten-day meeting, delegates will deliberate on WHO’s important role in the global health emergency architecture, Xinhua news agency reported. The Assembly will review the past year’s progress, achievements and challenges, as well as future priorities across key pillars of WHO’s work.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at the opening ceremony of the assembly, peace depends on health, disease in one country puts everyone at risk, so the focus should be on the betterment of health.
The Secretary-General noted that global life expectancy is up by more than 50 percent, infant mortality is down by 60 percent, and smallpox has been eradicated.
The COVID-19 pandemic has stalled progress in public health, Guterres said. We risk further undoing the huge gains made over the past decades and falling behind on the Sustainable Development Goals.
Let us continue to work together and support WHO to achieve the highest standard of health for all, he stressed.
Addressing the opening session, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus recalled the major achievements that the organization has made during its 75 years.
Tedros said the organization faces complex challenges as the world’s expectations from the World Health Organization have grown enormously.