EMPHNET hosted a meeting with Dr. Asmus Hammerich, Director of UHC/Non-Communicable Diseases & Mental Health, and Dr. Lamia Mahmoud, Regional Adviser for Non-Communicable Disease Prevention (NCP) at WHO/EMRO (World Health Organization/ Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office) on May 2, 2023.

The meeting, which was led by Dr. Mohannad Al Nsour, EMPHNET's Executive Director, was attended by teams from both organizations. The main focus of the meeting was to explore ways to better align the efforts of WHO and EMPHNET in responding to the rising burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR).

The attendees engaged in a productive discussion and identified key areas where the two organizations could work together to improve public health outcomes in the region. Collaboration was identified as the key to addressing the challenges posed by NCDs in the region.

The discussions centered around the importance of prevention, early detection, and management of NCDs. In particular, the meeting highlighted the need to focus on behavioral risk factors such as tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and harmful alcohol use. The participants also emphasized the importance of strengthening health systems in the region to better respond to the NCD burden.