At the Cabinet meeting today, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) reported on its participation in the Sixty-eighth World Health Assembly (WHA), held May 18-26, 2015 in Geneva, Switzerland.
This is the seventh consecutive year the ROC has been invited to the WHA, Premier Mao Chi-kuo noted. At the assembly, the nation not only showed the international community its experience and accomplishments in medical health; it has also expanded its global influence in the field. The premier thanked the delegates and Ministry of Foreign Affairs' (MOFA) overseas representative office staff for their hard work.
The WHA is the decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO). Participation in the WHO and promotion of medical diplomacy is an important platform for the ROC to demonstrate its professional soft power and gain the recognition of the international community, the premier reiterated. He instructed the MOHW, MOFA and other relevant ministries to continue their efforts so that the nation can join track with the international health community and thus advance ROC nationals' health and social welfare.
Every year since 2009, an ROC delegation has participated in the WHA as an observer under the name "Chinese Taipei," with its health minister formally addressed as "Minister" at the forum.
This year, MOHW Minister Chiang Been-huang addressed the assembly on behalf of the delegation, while other delegation members proactively participated in various technical committee meetings.
Breakthroughs from WHA attendance this year included completion of 54 bilateral talks and exchange of views on various issues, including communicable and noncommunicable diseases and national health insurance. All these efforts are conducive to promoting bilateral medical cooperation, the MOHW pointed out. Moreover, the ROC delegates made a record-breaking number of statements, addressing 28 technical issues and demonstrating the nation's pharmaceutical and medical strengths.