APEC Health Working Group convenes meeting

Within the framework of the APEC first Senior Officials’ Meeting, the event attracted more than 150 delegates, including senior health officials from 21 APEC member economies, the World Health Organisation, the United Nations Population Fund, the Association of Pacific Rim Universities and representatives from related APEC forums. 

Participants lauded the theme and priorities proposed by Vietnam at the event. 

Accordingly, Vietnam suggested the theme of enhancing the medical system towards universal health coverage and sustainable development and five priorities, including updating the progress of universal health coverage, intensifying the fight against emerging epidemic diseases and antibiotic resistance, strengthening the prevention of non-communicable diseases and health of the elderly, ensuring sustainable financial mechanism to develop health care, and placing health care in every policy and reinforcing multi-sectoral cooperation.

Director of the Health Ministry’s International Cooperation Department Nguyen Thi Giang Huong, who is also Vice President of the APEC Health Working Group 2017, shared Vietnamese health sector’s experience, achievements, challenges and orientations for coming years. 

Vietnam targets achieving health insurance coverage for the whole population by 2020 and cutting check-up and treatment cost to 42 percent from 54 percent, she said. 

She also took the occasion to call for closer cooperation among member economies, ministries, agencies and the entire society to strengthen the health system and achieve universal health coverage for the goal of the Healthy Asia-Pacific 2020 to accomplish the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. 

Delegates spoke highly of the outcomes of the “Healthy Asia-Pacific” Roadmap in the region. 

The meeting set four major tasks, including fulfilling the Millennial Development Goals in line with post-2015 development programme, strengthening prevention and control of non-communicable diseases, enhancing the health system in support of universal health coverage and promoting response to emergency cases. 

The meeting also approved the establishment of the APEC Core Group to address challenges and successfully realise the “Healthy Asia-Pacific” Roadmap with the involvement of Vietnam, Peru, Australia, China, Chinese Taipei and the Philippines.