KUALA LUMPUR, August 30 — A meeting of health ministers from ASEAN and China, Japan, and Korea today committed to enhance their capacity to address public health threats.
They also said there was a further need to strengthen combating antimicrobial resistance, food safety and zoonotic disease control, as well as inter-sectoral communications and information-sharing, including the regular sharing of outbreak investigation reports between human and other relevant sectors.
“We agree to strengthen our joint efforts in advocating, facilitating and implementing relevant social and economic interventions in addressing non-communicable diseases and its risk factors, including tobacco consumption and the harmful use of alcohol and unhealthy diet, as well as inactive lifestyle,” the countries said in a joint statement after convening the 8th ASEAN Plus Three Health Ministers Meeting (APTHMM) today in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
“We affirm that the health of our populations to be of paramount importance irrespective of our geographical, geopolitical and economic status.
“We reaffirm our commitments to the United Nations SDGs to achieve Universal Health Coverage (by 2030 which includes financial risk protection, access to quality essential health-care services and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all,” the nations added.
