Belgium and the World Health Organization (WHO) held a three-day strategic dialogue from 2 to 5 March 2025, reviewing progress in their longstanding partnership and agreeing to further boost collaboration on universal health coverage, health-systems strengthening, and equitable access to essential vaccines, medicines, and health technologies.
The Belgian delegation, led by Ambassador Christophe Payot, discussed strategic issues and ways to align WHO's directions with Belgium's development cooperation priorities in an evolving global health landscape. The partners exchanged updates on Belgium's support to global health areas highlighted during its 2024 presidency of the Council of the European Union.
Discussions covered accelerating equitable access to health products, with a focus on the Access to Medicines programme funded by Belgium, including country-level implementation in Senegal. They also addressed health emergencies and pandemic preparedness, including the pandemic agreement negotiations and the One Health approach, with examples from Gaza and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The partners reviewed progress in other areas such as neglected tropical diseases and sexual and reproductive health and rights. They discussed the way forward for the Belgium-WHO collaboration framework and a renewed Country Cooperation Strategy, supporting the WHO's 14th General Programme of Work.
WHO's Assistant Director-General, Dr Catharina Boehme, thanked Belgium for its support, highlighting work in Mozambique and Senegal. Belgian officials expressed pride in their support's impact and commitment to continued multilateral cooperation.
Source: World Health Organization
