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World Environment Day 2018: a call to “Beat plastic pollution”
4 June 2018 – On 5 June every year, the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations sister agencies and thousands of communities and organizations celebrate World Environment Day. This year, the theme of the Day is “Beat plastic pollution” – a call for action for the world to work together to address one of the great environmental challenges...
Summit of Arab League adopts Arab strategy on health and the environment
15 April 2018, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia – Arab Leaders, during the Summit of the Arab League convened in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, on 15 April 2018, adopted the Arab strategy on health and the environment and its strategic action guideline (2017–2030). Developed by the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean and WHO Regional Centre for...
Regional progress on drinking-water, sanitation and hygiene: 2017 update and Sustainable Development Goal baselines
30 July 2017 – While 87% of people in the Eastern Mediterranean Region have access to basic drinking-water and 73% have access to basic sanitation, such services are not necessarily safely managed as per Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets 6.1 and 6.2. The WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene...
Expert consultation to finalize a regional plan of action for the implementation of the WHO global roadmap to address air quality and health
Amman, Jordan 29 May 2017 – Air pollution is one of the major avoidable causes of morbidity and mortality in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. WHO estimated in 2016 that deaths as a result of air pollution exposure were from: lung cancer (3%); chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (9%); lower respiratory infections, namely pneumonia among...
First Joint Ministerial Meeting of the Arab Councils of the Health and the Environment Ministers
12 March 2017 – The joint health and environment ministerial meeting was convened in the Arab League premises in Cairo, Egypt, on 2 March 2017, presided by Arab League Secretary General and the Presidents of the 2 Arab Councils: the Council of Arab Health Ministers and the Council of Arab Ministers Responsible for the Environment; along with WHO...
United Nations, international health and development agencies to promote environmentally and socially responsible procurement of health commodities
On 7 December 2016, WHO joined Global Fund; the GAVI Alliance, United Nations Environment Programme, United Nations Development Programme, UNICEF, UNITAID, United Nations Population Fund and United Nations Office for Project Services in signing a statement of intent to align and “green” procurement of health commodities, in an effort to protect the...
New WHO report – Public health impacts of chemicals: knowns and unknowns (2016)
1 June 2016 – A new WHO report “Public health impacts of chemicals: knowns and unknowns” (2016) has been published. It complements the March 2016 report “Preventing disease through healthy environments: a global assessment of the burden of disease from environmental risks”. The new 2016 report estimates that 1.3 million lives and 43 million...
Cities reporting air quality data tripled in 2016
25 May 2016 – WHO launched on 12 May 2016 its ambient (outdoor) air pollution database, including data from more than 3000 cities, including 85 cities in 15 countries in our Region. By all means, this is a good achievement as only 26 cities reported such data in 2014. Air pollution is a major cause of disease and death. It is good news that more...
A healthier environment could save thousands of lives a year in the Eastern Mediterranean Region
15 March 2016 | Cairo – In 2012, an estimated 854 000 people died as a result of living or working in an unhealthy environment in the Eastern Mediterranean Region – nearly one in 5 of total deaths in this Region, according to new estimates from the World Health Organization (WHO). Environmental risk factors, such as air, water and soil pollution,...
Safe reuse of treated wastewater workshop
30 March 2015 – In collaboration with the University of Jordan, WHO Regional Centre for Environmental Health Action (CEHA) convened a national workshop on 21 March 2015 on the safe use of treated wastewater in agriculture, as a cost-effective adaptation measure against climate change. Local stakeholders’ knowledge was utilized as part of a...
