An intercountry consultative seminar, entitled "The efficiency path to promoting universal coverage in countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region", was held in Beirut, Lebanon, from 13 to 15 December 2011.

The goal of the seminar was to attract the attention of policy-makers to the importance of the proper use of limited health-care resources. Its objectives were to:

• advocate strategies to expedite the move towards universal coverage;
• illustrate the importance of promoting a policy of “more health for the money” alongside the general trend of "more money for health";
• expose the various sources of inefficiencies related to health care systems, in general, and those of the Eastern Mediterranean Region, in particular;
• discuss strategies to limit health system inefficiencies
• consider approaches that help mitigate the negative effects of prevalent inefficiencies.