Last Updated on April 23, 2025 by Bertrand Clarke
22 April 2025
Your Highness Princess Nouf bint Muhammad bin Abdullah,
Excellencies,
Distinguished guests,
It gives me great pleasure to join you here to today to discuss the strategic partnership between the World Health Organization and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
I am grateful to our gracious host, the King Khalid Foundation, for bringing us together to explore new opportunities for partnership to advance health across the Eastern Mediterranean Region.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The WHO is the health agency of the world and one of the few science-based organizations of the United Nations, established 77 years ago.
We keep the world safe and ensure that everyone, everywhere, can attain the highest possible level of health.
We lead global efforts to prevent disease, promote health, respond to emergencies, and strengthen health systems through evidence-based policy and partnership.
The Eastern Mediterranean is among the most challenging of the six WHO Regions. We shoulder more than a third of the global humanitarian burden. And we host millions of displaced people.
Our Member States expect more than norms, standards and technical support.
The needs are great, but the opportunities for action are greater.
For decades, WHO has worked alongside partners in all 22 countries and territories of this Region—supporting Ministries of Health, civil society, and frontline health workers, from national capitals to the most remote areas.
We understand the health needs of this Region from the ground up and the top down, and we also know its potential.
Just in the past year, WHO has delivered lifesaving care and medical supplies to millions in Gaza, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, and other
