보건복지부 영문홈페이지

MOHW Attends the 77th World Health Assembly:

"All for Health, Health for All"

- Minister Cho KyooHong emphasized Korea’s commitment

to join the global efforts to ensure health for all in his keynote speech -

- Reaffirmed strong partnerships through meetings with WHO Director-General

and chief delegates from Japan, Australia, and Indonesia -

The Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW, Minister Cho KyooHong) announced that the Korean delegation (Chief Delegate: Minister Cho KyooHong) attended the 77th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO) from May 27 (Monday).

This General Assembly, starting on May 27 (Monday) and lasting for six days, began with high-level congratulatory speeches, the election of the chairpersons, the opening speech by the Secretary-General, and keynote speeches by the chief representatives. The agenda included ▲the 14th General Programme of Work, ▲Investment Round, ▲Universal Health Coverage, ▲antimicrobial resistance, ▲infection prevention and control, ▲maternal, infant and young child nutrition, and the ▲Programme Budget 2024-2025.

Recalling the WHO Charter, which stipulates the right of everyone to equally enjoy the highest attainable standard of health, the WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized that the WHO is serving as a forum for multilateral cooperation to ensure health for all. Listing various factors threatening health, such as climate change, conflict, and infectious and noncommunicable diseases, the Director-General urged Member States to share their opinions on some key agendas, including the approval of the 14th General Programme of Work (GPW)―WHO’s medium- and long-term strategic plan―and their participation in the Investment Round, a resource mobilization approch.

Following the Director-General’s remarks, keynote speeches were delivered by Member State leaders. Minister Cho first expressed his support for the adoption of the 14th General Programme of Work and highlighted the Korean government's commitment to ensuring “Health for All.” He introduced several of the government's efforts for international collaboration, including the operation of the Global Training Hub for Biomanufacturing to strengthen the vaccine and therapeutics production capacity of low- and middle-income countries, as well as the hosting of the World Bio Summit in November this year. Minister Cho concluded his speech by calling for Member States' commitment to the WHO's mandate to ensure “Health for All” and expressed his hope that meaningful solutions would be explored at the Assembly.

Minister Cho also held bilateral meetings with the WHO Director-General and key Member States, including Japan, Australia, and Indonesia. In his meeting with the WHO Director-General, the minister discussed the 14th General Programme of Work, broader involvement of Koreans in the WHO, the Global Training Hub for Biomanufacturing, and invitation to the World Bio Summit. With the Japanese chief delegate, Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare Shiozaki Akihisa, Minister Cho discussed ways to enhance trilateral cooperation among, Korea, Japan, and China and strengthen cooperation in the bio sector. With the Australian chief delegate, Minister for Health and Aged Care Mark Butler, he exchanged views on the Investment Round and the Pandemic Agreement, and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on health cooperation to collaborate on healthcare, mental health, and ageing policies. Additionally, Minister Cho met with the Indonesian chief delegate, Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin, to share the achievements of bilateral cooperation in pharmaceutical and medical services and personnel exchanges in the health sector, and agreed to further develop these initiatives.

Minister Cho said, "Through our participation in the World Health Assembly, we were able to reaffirm the commitment of Member States to ensure the right to health for all.” He added, "As a key global player, the Korean government will continue to actively participate in international cooperation to address health inequalities and share our experiences in transitioning from a beneficiary country receiving aid from international organizations to a donor country."

Minister Cho returned to Korea after completing the schedule on May 27 (Monday) and May 28 (Tuesday). ///