Sri Lanka has been awarded the World Health Organization (WHO) Public Health Achievement Certificate at the 79th World Health Assembly in Geneva for eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV, NewsFirst reported on Tuesday.
Health and Mass Media Minister Dr Nalinda Jayatissa accepted the certificate on behalf of the country from WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Elimination of mother-to-child transmission (EMTCT) of HIV is a long-standing WHO global health target and is one of a small number of “triple elimination” public health milestones recognised at the agency level. Sri Lanka’s certification places the country among the small group of states formally validated by WHO for meeting the EMTCT threshold.
The award comes during a week in which the Minister has been a visible face for Sri Lanka in Geneva, opening his diplomatic round with the Commonwealth Health Ministers’ meeting on May 17 and taking the floor at the 79th World Health Assembly on Monday alongside bilateral meetings with counterparts from Bhutan, Thailand and Bangladesh.
The 79th World Health Assembly opened on May 18 and runs until May 23, drawing health ministers and senior officials from WHO member states to set the agency’s policy direction, programme budget and global health priorities for the year ahead.
