13 June 2019 – On the occasion of World Blood Donor Day 2019, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Dr Ahmed Al-Mandhari emphasized that everyone in the world had the right to access safe blood transfusion, when and where it was needed. Access to safe blood and blood products is essential for universal health coverage (UHC) and a key...

June 7, 2019 - Cairo: WHO is gravely concerned about the recent impact of violence in Sudan on people in need, health workers and medical facilities. Incursions into hospitals in Khartoum have resulted in emergency services being shut down, the unwarranted transfer of patients, injuries to five medical staff and patients, and threats to others. Health...

Quit now and say no to second-hand smoke Cairo, Egypt, 31 May, 2019 ‒ On this World No Tobacco Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) is calling on people to quit tobacco smoking and say no to second-hand smoke to protect their lungs. Tobacco is harmful in all its forms. It kills over 8 million people every year. Tobacco smoking and second-hand smoke...

Amman, Jordan, 28 May 2019 – The Regional Verification Commission for Measles and Rubella Elimination (RVC) in the Eastern Mediterranean Region has declared that measles and rubella have been eliminated from both Bahrain and Oman, and that Islamic Republic of Iran has eliminated rubella and is about to eliminate measles. The RVC met in Amman,...

12 May 2019 ‒ Every year, International Nurses Day is celebrated on 12 May. This year’s campaign focuses on nurses as a voice to lead achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), attainment of health as a human right and achievement of universal health coverage (SDG 3.8) to ensure that no person is left behind without access to health...

8 May 2019, Cairo, Egypt: The World Health Organization (WHO) strongly condemns continuing attacks on health facilities in north-western Syria. Since 28 April, in just 9 days, 12 health structures have been hit.  On 5 May, 3 facilities were struck in one day alone, including 2 major hospitals that provide secondary health care in the area. One of...

7 May 2019 – The Fifth United Nations Global Road Safety Week, under the theme “Leadership for road safety”, is taking place from 6 to 12 May 2019. This major worldwide campaign was requested by the United Nations General Assembly in April 2018 in resolution A/72/271 on improving global road safety. Road safety continues to be a grave public...

Global Hand Hygiene Day will be celebrated worldwide on 5 May 2019. This year, the focus will be the importance of good hand hygiene practices as part of improving patient safety globally to achieve universal health coverage (UHC), under the theme “Clean care for all – it’s in your hands”. Hand hygiene is part of infection prevention and control...

24 April 2019 – Malaria-endemic countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region have made significant progress. Malaria cases and deaths in the Region fell by more than 60% between 2000 and 2015, thanks to increased coverage of malaria control interventions. In the same period, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco were certified free from malaria, while...

23 April 2019, Cairo – World Immunization Week will be celebrated both globally and regionally from 24 to 30 April 2019، using the slogan “Protected Together: Vaccines Work!” to promote the use of vaccines to protect people of all ages against vaccine-preventable diseases. Immunization saves millions of lives every year and is widely recognized as one...