WHO regional meet ends with Dili Declaration; India honoured for tetanus, NCD work
The 79th session of the World Health Organization's Regional Committee for South-East Asia concluded in Dili, Timor-Leste, on Friday, 11 September, with member states adopting the Dili Declaration on Human Resources for Health and a set of resolutions on health financing, tuberculosis and vaccine confidence. India, represented by Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda, received two WHO recognitions during the four-day meeting, according to Asianet Newsable and WHO's regional office.
What the Dili Declaration commits to
The declaration, formally titled the Dili Declaration on Human Resources for Health: Equity in Specialised Care, commits the 11 member states of the region to reduce disparities in access to specialised medical services and to the skilled health workers who provide them. The gap between urban tertiary hospitals and rural districts in the availability of specialists is a long-standing concern across South Asia.
Member states endorsed the declaration after a ministerial roundtable and agreed on a timeline: national leadership mechanisms are to be set up by 2027, baseline assessments completed by 2028 and costed implementation plans in place by 2030, with progress reviews in 2027 and 2029 and a final report in 2030, the Asianet report said.
Other resolutions adopted
Beyond the declaration, the committee passed resolutions on medical devices, diagnostics and assistive technology; resilience of health facilities; patient and blood safety; sustainable health financing; ending tuberculosis by 2030; and improving vaccine confidence and uptake to achieve measles and rubella elimination. The regional action plan on viral hepatitis, HIV and sexually transmitted infections was extended to 2030.
The session also established a South-East Asia Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence Collaborative Network, referred to as SEA-DAC, to coordinate regional cooperation on digital health tools.
India's recognition
India received a WHO award for sustaining the elimination of maternal and neonatal tetanus, and a second award for leadership in tackling non-communicable diseases through primary healthcare, the reports said. Nadda told the committee that India's public health achievements had received significant recognition, and shared India's progress towards what he described as a stronger, more equitable and resilient health system.
Separately, in his meetings with Nadda, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus praised the Ayushman Arogya Mandir network, which Medical Dialogues reported comprises about 1.6 lakh centres screening for hypertension, diabetes and cancers, and noted that institutional deliveries in India had risen from 78 per cent to 93 per cent. He also commended the role of ASHA workers in community health.
Why it matters
Non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and cancer now account for a majority of deaths in India, and the shift of screening to the primary care level is central to the government's strategy. The Dili commitments on specialist distribution will, if implemented, require states to address the persistent shortage of specialists in district hospitals.
The declaration and resolutions are non-binding, but WHO regional committees set the reporting framework against which member states are measured over the coming years.