Syria Takes Part in World Health Assembly’s 68th Session
GENEVA, (ST)-Syria is taking part in the activities of the 68th Session of the World Health Assembly opened in Geneva yesterday.
Health Minister Nizar Yazigi leads the Syrian delegation to the event in which health ministers and delegations of 194 countries member in the World Health Organization (WHO) are participating.
During the opening ceremony, Yazigi was elected as member of the General Committee of the World Health Assembly.
Director General of the WHO talked about the health situation in the world and the organization’s efforts to combat diseases and plagues, to protect general health and to upgrade health systems.
In a statement to SANA, Yazigi said “the health system in Syria has proved its efficiency to meet the health needs of Syrian citizens under the ongoing crisis in Syria.”
He pointed out that “If the health sector of any country in the world was exposed to just a small part of the aggression the health sector in Syria is facing, it wouldn’t withstand or continue to provide medical services and quality medicine like Syria did,” the minister added.
Earlier in the day, Yazigi met Director of the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office, Dr. Alauddin Alwan and the Resident Representative of the WHO in Syria Elizabeth Hoff and discussed with them cooperation between the ministry and the UN health organization in tackling health issues at the local and regional levels particularly the latest developments relating to combating polio and other communicable and infectious diseases.
On his part, Dr. Alauddin stressed the WHO’s keenness on meeting the health needs of the population in Syria and the people affected by the crisis in the country. He hailed the efforts exerted by the Syrian health ministry to combat polio.
Activities of the 68th Session of the World Health Assembly will continue till May 26th. The Syrian health minister is due to make a statement to speak in details about Syria’s health situation, the damage caused to the health sector as a result of the armed terrorist groups’ attacks and the efforts being exerted by the Syrian state as to provide necessary health care and services to all needy Syrians inside the country.
Hamda Mustafa