“The government of Pakistan is fully committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and ensuring the health and well-being of its people,” said Federal Health Minister.
The Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations, and Coordination of Pakistan PK, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), celebrated Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Day on Thursday, 2022. The goal of the day was to raise awareness about the importance of strong, equitable, and resilient health systems and UHC in Pakistan (PK).
The ceremony’s honorees included, Minister of State, and Dr. Palitha Mahipala, WHO representative.
“The government of Pakistan PK is fully committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and ensuring the health and well-being of its people,” said Federal Health Minister in a statement. He went on to say that achieving universal health coverage is a critical driver of inclusive and sustainable economic growth. Maintaining progress toward UHC is difficult and, first and foremost, a political decision, he added.
According to him, effective primary health care (PHC)-oriented systems are the foundation of equitable and resilient health systems that provide high-quality health care to all. Investing in UHC and PHC is the sure way to ensure our communities’ socioeconomic well-being, he added.
According to Federal Health Minister , overcoming barriers requires strong political commitment from national, provincial, and federating area governments, as well as partner organisations.
He expressed gratitude to the provincial and federating area health departments, district health offices, and health development partners for their extensive support and contribution to UHC. He also thanked the WHO for organising this ceremony to commemorate UHC Day.
Dr Palitha Mahipala, WHO Representative, thanked the health minister for his ministry’s overwhelming support in commemorating this day at the national level in order to renew the country’s commitment to UHC advancement.
He emphasised that this year’s UHC Day theme, “Build the world we want: a healthy future for all,” emphasises the importance of equity, trust, healthy environments, investments, and accountability in order to build strong health systems.
He stressed that investment in health systems is the need of the hour and urged all stakeholders to join hands and make the commitment to prioritise investments in building resilient health systems that can withstand crises such as pandemics and natural disasters to ensure a “Healthy Future for All.”
On World Health Day, WHO and the Ministry of National Health Services jointly released three reports (the Pakistan UHC Monitoring Report 2022, the Pakistan PHC Plan, and the Status of Health Financing in Pakistan).
The publication of these reports is an important step toward monitoring the current state of UHC, PHC, and health financing at the national level.
Representatives from federal and provincial health departments, UN agencies, health development partners, and other stakeholders attended the event.