PUTRAJAYA: Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad is leading the Malaysian delegation to the 8th Islamic Conference of Health Ministers (ICHM8), which will be held in Amman, Jordan, this Tuesday (Oct 7) to Thursday.
ICHM serves as a health platform under the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), bringing together health ministers from member countries to discuss issues affecting the health of the ummah (Muslims), strengthen resilient health systems, and expand solidarity and Islamic health diplomacy.
In a statement, the Health Ministry said Dzulkefly is scheduled to deliver Malaysia’s national statement during the plenary session, highlighting efforts to strengthen the post-pandemic health system, accelerate universal health coverage (UHC), and call for Islamic world solidarity in ensuring access to health as a fundamental human right.
He will also be a panelist in a session titled “Building Equitable and Resilient Health Systems for UHC and Health Security in OIC Member Countries,” sharing Malaysia’s experiences in primary care transformation, health digitalisation, and health financing reform.
“Malaysia’s participation in ICHM8 reflects the nation’s active role in Islamic and international health diplomacy. It also reinforces the Malaysia Madani aspiration, which upholds the values of wellbeing, sustainability and compassion in building an inclusive, fair and humane health system at regional and global levels,” the statement said.
According to the ministry, this year’s conference will discuss several key resolutions, including the extension of the OIC Strategic Health Programme of Action (SHPA) for another 10 years, focusing on pandemics, mental health, climate-related risks, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), health system resilience, healthy lifestyles, disease prevention and control, as well as health crisis preparedness.
Other resolutions will address maternal, child and nutrition health, including efforts to reduce maternal and child mortality, combat malnutrition, and enhance self-reliance in the production and supply of medicines, vaccines and health technologies among OIC member countries.
The ministry said Malaysia will nominate itself as the lead country for ‘Thematic Area 2’ (Disease Prevention and Control) by introducing the Lung Health Initiative (LHI), which aims to address the global burden of lung diseases such as asthma, tuberculosis, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and lung cancer through policy collaboration, innovation among member countries and regional best-practice sharing.
Malaysia previously played a key role as lead country for ‘Thematic Area 3’ (Maternal, Newborn, Child Health & Nutrition) for the 2019-2022 period, during which Malaysia coordinated various initiatives with the Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRIC) and the World Health Organization (WHO), including the virtual OIC training on maternal and child health in November 2022.
In addition to Malaysia’s official participation in ICHM8, MOH said Dzulkefly is also scheduled to conduct several courtesy calls and hold bilateral meetings, including the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on health cooperation between the governments of Malaysia and Jordan, and a courtesy call on Malaysia’s Ambassador to Jordan and Palestine Mohamad Nasri Abdul Rahman.
Dzulkefly will also hold bilateral meetings with Maldives Health Minister Abdulla Nazim Ibrahim, Minister of State for National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination Dr Mukhtar Ahmad Malik, as well as visit the King Hussein Cancer Center (KHCC) to explore cooperation opportunities in oncology and clinical research, and attend an engagement session with the Malaysian diaspora in Jordan, including a keynote address and dialogue with students and professional communities. – Bernama
