NEW DELHI: Emergency preparedness across South-East Asia got a shot in the arm with the 11 countries in the region establishing a fund to build preparedness for natural disasters and health emergencies.
The fund aims to make health systems in the region, which is among the most disaster-prone in the world, disaster-resilient and ensure seamless sharing of information and resources across national boundaries.
Apart from cyclones and flooding, the region has also been threatened several emerging diseases, including Zika, H1N1, MERS CoV and SARS.
In 2016 alone, Zika virus infection has struck Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia, MERS CoV reached Thailand, and Sri Lanka faced devastating floods and landslides that affected half a million people and led to massive displacements.
“To date, post-disaster funding through WHO’s South-East Asia Regional Health Emergency Fund has done an excellent job of helping countries respond to health emergencies once they’ve occurred, as we saw most recently in Nepal and Sri Lanka.
The new funding stream will allow countries to invest in infrastructure and human resources to enhance preparedness,” Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia, speaking at the 69th session of WHO Regional Committee Meeting.
{{/usCountry}}The new funding stream will allow countries to invest in infrastructure and human resources to enhance preparedness,” Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia, speaking at the 69th session of WHO Regional Committee Meeting.
{{/usCountry}}