WHO/Europe and the Turkic Council sign a memorandum of understanding strengthening new partnerships in the WHO European Region

Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, and Mr Baghdad Amreyev, Secretary General of the Turkic Council, signed a memorandum of understanding between WHO/Europe and the Turkic Council on 11 September 2020.

The memorandum lays the legal basis for future cooperation and concrete collaboration between the 2 organizations in the field of health, including moving towards universal health coverage, protecting against health emergencies and promoting the well-being of the populations in the Member States of the Turkic Council. A work plan will be elaborated to assist the implementation of joint programmes and projects.

During the meeting, the Regional Director referred to WHO/Europe’s excellent relations with the Member States of the Turkic Council, stating that it is committed to building a strong alliance with them and to coordinating stakeholders in and across countries.

The collaboration between the Turkic Council and WHO/Europe was further strengthened by the first-time participation of the Turkic Council and Mr Amreyev at the 70th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe. Mr Amreyev addressed the Regional Committee and strongly supported the proposal of WHO/Europe to unite the efforts of regional multilateral institutions and mechanisms around health as one of the key objectives of the European Programme of Work (2020–2025), “United Action for Better Health in Europe”.