Officials of the APEC Health Working Group gather in Ho Chi Minh City on August 21 (Source: VNA)Working Group gathered in on August 21, expecting to address a
range of issues in order to build a .
In his opening remarks, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Health
Le Quang Cuong highlighted health as a critical component of economic and trade
development and cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region.
Investment in health is the key to inclusive and sustainable
economic growth, he said, adding that better health leads to greater wealth and
that will be an essential driver of long-term economic development growth.
Cuong reviewed Vietnam’s hosting of the first Health Working
Group Meeting in Nha Trang city, the central province of Khanh Hoa, from
February 23-24, with the theme of “Health system strengthening towards
sustainable development” and five priorities.
The priorities include progress on universal health coverage
in APEC economies towards healthy Asia-Pacific by 2020, strengthening
communicable disease control and antimicrobial resistance among APEC economies,
integrated approach for promoting healthy aging and non-communicable diseases
(NCDs), sustainable health care finance in the transitional period and health
in all policies, and multi sectoral action to achieve health related to
sustainable development goals (SDGs) 2030.
The theme and priorities were highly appreciated and
endorsed by 21 APEC economies as they are issues of common interest that need to
be strengthened more for all APEC economies in the coming year, he noted.
The second Meeting will review the
2017 HWG Work Plan, and discuss priorities and indicators for healthy
Asia-Pacific by 2020, as well as progress reports on approved and on-going
projects of APEC economies.
the meeting by APEC economies.
A joint session with other APEC fora and other international
health bodies will be organised on August 22, which shows their interests and
potential cooperation on health in the future.
One of the most important content of this meeting is to
discuss and agree on the draft of paragraph of Leaders’ Declaration and Joint
Statement of Ministerial Meeting which has been developed by Vietnam.
This paragraph should be endorsed at this meeting before
submitting to the High Level Meeting for the ministers’ approval.
The paragraph should be condensed and reflect the five
priorities that the first APEC Health Working Group Meeting has endorsed, Cuong
said.
Speaking with reporters, Tran Thi Giang Huong, head of the
International Cooperation Department under the Vietnamese Health Ministry, said the Health
Ministry is scheduled to chair seven meetings on health-related issues during
which relevant strategies and policies in APEC as well as action plans for
special working groups will be scrutinised.
The events draw the participation of eight health ministers
and five deputy health ministers of APEC economies, she added.
The seventh APEC High-Level Meeting on Health and Economy,
slated for August 23, will take the theme of “medical financial reform for
public health, looking towards SDGs,” which, Huong said, has received high
appreciation of other APEC economies.
Under the declaration, Vietnam is expected to underline the
need for APEC to increase investments in the health sector, and call on the
APEC economies to joint hands in combating NCDs and tacking issues regarding
aging population and cooperation in fighting newly emerging diseases and
reoccurrence of diseases, along with health in all policies, she said.
HWG Chair Lic. Rocio Cathia Casildo Canedo, Director General
of the General Office for Cooperation
and International Affairs under the Ministry of Health of Peru, told the
Vietnam News Agency reporters that the topics Vietnam has promoted are relevant
to both developed and developing APEC economies which have different health
systems.
Vietnam made a good impression in the first meeting and now
the country is doing a great job by suggesting improvements of concept notes,
she said.
economies, Toru Kajiwara, Director of the Office of Global Health Cooperation
under the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan, emphasised medical
cooperation between Vietnam and Japan.
He said aging population is an urgent issue for all APEC
economies, including Vietnam, although the country has a young population.
“But the pace of aging population is very fast,” he said,
suggesting the Vietnamese Government take a good care of this issue and prepare
good policy measures.-VNA
Source: VietnamPlus
