WHO, World Health Organization

Dr. Michel Tailhades - WHO Representative

Mission statement

The World Health Organization-founded in 1948-is the specialized agency of the United Nations for health. WHO Country Office in Uzbekistan belongs to one of the six regional offices around which WHO Is globally structured, namely, the Regional Office for Europe (WHO EURO).

Uzbekistan officially joined the WHO on 25th May 1992. From 1993 the collaboration between WHO EURO and Uzbekistan took off: WHO Country Office has been an active player in the country, towards the achievement of a common development goal - Health for all.

Despite the numerous challenges ahead with regards to the strengthening of the national public health care system's performance in effectively addressing health priorities, Uzbekistan has undergone important developments in the past years: WHO plays a crucial role towards a strengthened capacity of the Uzbek Ministry of Health in improving national system's overall performance and in developing Innovative policies, while Improving the quality of care at the various levels through the provision of technical assistance.

Main areas of work

WHO's scope of action in Uzbekistan includes a number of strategic areas of collaboration regularly identified jointly with the Ministry of Health and articulated in a Biennium Collaborative Agreement (BCA). For the current biennium (2008-2009), WHO CO is focusing its activity on:

1. Communicable diseases: the immunization programmes are contributing to achieve the MDG on reducing child mortality, improving immunization services and combating infectious diseases. This unit also includes avian influenza and pandemic influenza surveillance and preparendess.
2. HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria: Provide assistance to the Ministry of Health in prevention,treatment and care of these diseases.

3. Non communicable diseases: to prevent and reduce disease, disability and premature death from chronic non communicable conditions, mental disorders, violence and injuries
4. Mother and child healthcare: to reduce morbidity and mortality and improve health during key stages of life, including pregnancy, childbirth, the neonatal period, childhood and adolescence, while improving sexual and reproductive health and
promoting active and healthy ageing for all individuals, using a life-course approach and addressing equity gaps
5. Nutrition and food safety: to improve nutrition status, food safety and food security, through the life-course and in support of public health and sustainable development.
6. Karakalpakstan Project, which will aim at the following objectives:

• To develop national capacity for assessing health impacts of climate change and
  air pollution
• To develop a national plan for protecting health from climate change.
• To reduce the burden of respiratory diseases to climate related events;
• To improve the quality of nutrition assessment and care in the health system;
• To establish, in collaboration with Uzbekistan Hydrometeorology, a link to early warning on dust storms to develop health warnings to the population.

7. Human rights and Health: in the end of July 2008, WHO country office in Uzbekistan was formally approached by the Uzbek Ombudsman to provide support in the following areas:

• training of health workers on health protection and patients' rights;
• training of trainers to raise awareness among health workers and the general public on the right to health;
• developing and producing awareness-raising material on patients' rights, targeting both health workers and the general public.

As a result, the Ombudsman Office, the MOH, and WHO hold a series of workshop, at the national level, to disseminate the links between Human Rights and Health.

8 - UZB strengthened capacity in monitoring of implementation of National Drug Policy
9 - To provide leadership, strengthen governance and foster partnership and collaboration with the Country, the United Nations system, and other stakeholders in order to fulfill the mandate of WHO in advancing the global health agenda as set out in the Eleventh General Programme of Work.

Main partners

Each Technical Program works with the Ministry of Health's specific departments, through national counterparts, so to ensure the highest possible degree of 'national ownership', with the Parliament, Ombudsman Institution, Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Environmental Committee of Uzbekistan. International partners are UNDP, UNICEF, WB, UNFPA, UNAIDS, CDC, UNESCO, USAID, Project HOPE, ZdravPlus, ADB, GFATM, Europa House, OSCE, MSF (Holland).

Contact information
WHO CO in Uzbekistan,
16 M. Tarobiy Str.,
100100, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Tel: (998 71) 281 51 72/73/74/75/76
Fax:(99871) 2815178

Website:  www.euro.who.int/uzbekistan   

List of links to publications and reports produced by WHO CO in Uzbekistan, available on line in the WHO CO webpage (http://www.euro.who.int/Uzbekistan/publications/20080123_1)

1. Primary care quality management in Uzbekistan (2008) http://www.euro.who.int/Document/E91927.pdf  

2. Making Pregnancy Safer in Uzbekistan. Maternal mortality and morbidity audit (Activities Report 2002-2008) http://www.euro.who.int/document/MPS/mps_uzb.pdf  

3. Towards the European strategy for Making Pregnancy Safer: improving maternal and perinatal health (2007) http://www.euro.who.int/document/MPS/uzb_mpseuro_countryprofiles.pdf  

4. WHO-AIMS report on mental health system in Uzbekistan (2007) http://www.who.int/mental_health/evidence/uzbekistan_who_aims_report.pdf

5. National workshop "Beyond the Numbers", reviewing maternal deaths and complications (2005) http://www.euro.who.int/document/MPS/050403_btn_uzb_new.pdf