During his visit, Secretary General Amreyev held negotiations with the Regional Director Dr. Kluge and Senior Directors of the Divisions of the organization and discussed the cooperation opportunities between the Turkic Council and WHO on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two organizations on 11 September 2020, which establishes the legal basis for the future engagements.
Secretary General Amreyev briefed WHO officials on the activities of the Turkic Council conducted in the field of the health to mitigate the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic among the Member and Observer States.
Reiterating the support of the Turkic Council to the endeavors of WHO European Regional Office to unite the efforts of regional multilateral institutions and mechanisms in the field of health as one of the key objectives of the European Program of Work (2020–2025), Secretary General expressed the readiness of the Turkic Council to coordinate and cooperate with WHO not only in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic but also in the post-pandemic period in the other areas of the health sector for the implementation of the Program.
B. Amreyev stated that the Turkic Council stands ready to develop joint programs based on the MoU such as strengthening health systems and training of the health workforce, providing technical assistance, introduction of scientific developments and innovative technologies, preparedness, readiness, timely detection, response and reduction of the negative consequences of the spread of infection diseases, provision of technical assistance in emergency situations and supporting non-communicable and communicable disease prevention and control among others.
Regional Director Dr. Kluge emphasized that WHO is closely following the developments in the Member and Observer States of the Turkic Council since the outbreak of the pandemic and extended their support through their Regional Offices.
Regional Director stated that WHO attaches utmost importance to the cooperation with the Turkic Council, and in this vein will develop joint projects with the Turkic Council to reach the Member and Observer States of the Council.
Dr. Kluge further expressed that cooperation between the Turkic Council and its Members with WHO sets a good example for the prospective multilateral collaboration for the other countries and international organizations.
Secretary General and Regional Director underlined the importance of preparing and adopting Joint Action Plan for implementing the MoU. In this context, they exchanged views on the modalities of cooperation within the framework of the MoU.
Secretary General had also meetings with Dr. Dorit Nitzan, Regional Emergency Director and Dr. Gundo Weiler, Director of Country Support and Health Emergency to discuss issues related to the full emergency cycle, from prevention and preparedness to response and recovery as well as integrated approaches to health.
In the meeting of the Secretary General with Dr. Natasha Azzopardi Muscat, Director of Country Health Policies and Systems Division, the cooperation opportunities in the field of advance universal health coverage by strengthening national, regional and local health policies, public health, and the health system, implementing policies that promote health, prevent illness and facilitate access to quality health services by ensuring an inclusive approach and strengthening of the health workforce in the region were discussed.
Secretary General, in the meeting with Dr. Siddhartha Datta, Regional Advisor for Vaccine-Preventable Diseases and Immunization Program, discussed improving and sustaining high vaccination coverage by devising tailored interventions using the available tools including a robust monitoring mechanism.
Furthermore, during the meeting between Secretary General and Mr. Robb Butler, Executive Director of Regional Director’s Division, the opportunities to open new “Collaboration Centers” in the Member and Observer States, also to improve the existing opportunities for capacity building and technical assistance programs were discussed.
As the results of the above-mentioned meetings, Parties agreed to elevate existing cooperation to the next level, and agreed on finalizing the Joint Action Plan for the implementation of the MOU.
According to the draft Joint Action Plan, the Turkic Council and WHO is planning to work on organizing online training programs, increasing the numbers of “Collaboration Centers” in the Member and Observer States, improving and sustaining high vaccination coverage, accelerating implementation of the International Health Regulation, improving risk assessment and management in the Member and Observer States, conducting capacity building for data and health information systems, strengthening digital health in primary health care and including the WHO Country Representatives to the meetings of the Health Scientific Group of the Turkic Council as well as other related issues in the field of health.
Upon the request of the Secretary General, Dr. Kluge agreed to double the efforts of WHO to support Kyrgyzstan to mitigate the negative effects of COVID-19.
During the conclusion session of the visit, Secretary General of the Turkic Council and Regional Director of WHO along with their officials, held virtual meetings with the Ambassadors of the Member States accredited to Denmark and Permanent Representatives to the United Nations in Geneva as well as the WHO Representatives in the Member and Observer States of the Turkic Council and shared with the outcomes of the visit and the prospective projects to be taken place between the two organizations in the upcoming period.
Director of the Turkic Council Europen Office Dr. János Hóvári and Turkic Council Project Directors Jeyhun Shahverdiyev and Ersin Aydoğan accompanied the Secretary General during his contacts in Copenhagen.
