Egypt, World Bank discuss cooperation in health sector
Egypt’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health and Population, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, received on Saturday, the Regional Director for Human Development at the World Bank, Fadia Saada, to follow up on the executive position of the ongoing projects and enhance ways of cooperation with the World Bank in the health sector during the coming period.
Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Population, explained that the Minister praised the fruitful and continuing cooperation between the Ministry and the World Bank in supporting many vital projects, especially public health initiatives.
Abdel Ghaffar said that the meeting discussed the results of the projects implemented by the Ministry in cooperation with the World Bank, especially projects related to surveillance efforts to combat the Coronavirus (COVID-19), training medical staff, building their capabilities, and providing preventive supplies during the pandemic.
The meeting also addressed projects that support the implementation of the comprehensive health insurance project in the governorates, in addition to the existing project to develop the health system in Egypt by providing medical devices, supplies and medicines, to support the efforts of the Egyptian health system in providing medical services to displaced brothers from neighbouring countries.
He added that cooperation between the Ministry of Health and Population and the World Bank included supporting the presidential initiative to eliminate waiting lists, as well as developing basic care units, as well as holding training courses on combating gender-based violence, and accrediting blood and plasma centres in the governorates, in addition to the ongoing work to develop a map. It would assess the ministry’s needs, to enhance institutional development efforts.
The meeting also discussed ways to enhance cooperation in exchanging experiences with other countries, to conduct a demographic study on how to facilitate access to healthcare services for the elderly in the next ten years.
The spokesperson pointed to work on developing a national strategy for providing health services to the elderly, in cooperation with the World Health Organization, to develop programmes that would confront and treat ageing diseases, in conjunction with the entry into force of the recently ratified Elder Rights Care Law.
For her part, the Regional Director for Human Development at the World Bank expressed her happiness with the cooperation with the Ministry of Health and Population and the achievement of many achievements in files of common interest and called for holding a high-level meeting with the participation of the relevant ministries, before the second conference on population, health and development scheduled for next October to discuss visions and goals for supporting health education in Egypt, ensuring the development of a clear road map and action plan to develop the human element and improve its characteristics.