The Country Cooperation Strategy 2023-2026, elaborated by the Ministry of Health and Wellness in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO), was launched this afternoon by the Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Kailesh Kumar Singh Jagutpal, at the Caudan Arts Centre in Port-Louis.
Various eminent personalities including the WHO Representative, Dr Anne Marie Ancia, and the United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator in Mauritius and Seychelles, Ms Lisa Simrique Singh, were also present on the occasion.
In his address, the Health Minister, Dr Jagutpal, stated that the third Country Cooperation Strategy to be implemented by his Ministry and the WHO for the period 2023-2026, is based on the Health Sector Strategic Plan of the Ministry for the period 2020-2024.
He informed that it aims at setting measurable objectives so as to evaluate how far the country has gone in achieving the mission of providing universal health coverage and to pave the way for a healthy nation.
The WHO will monitor and evaluate the progress made in achieving the Health Sector Strategic Plan according to a well-defined time-frame and measurable objectives, added the Minister.
Besides, Mr Jagutpal informed that Mauritius obtained a financial assistance of Rs 98 Million from the WHO for the period 2022-2023 and announced that the estimated budget for the implementation of the Country Cooperation Strategy amounts to some Rs 908 million for the period 2023 - 2026.
He emphasised that the objectives set in the Country Cooperation Strategy have been elaborated to address imminent challenges such as ageing population, rising healthcare costs, accelerated use of new technologies,monitoring of new disease outbreak and tackling non-communicable diseases in Mauritius.
The Minister further affirmed that the joint work between his Ministry and the WHO will be guided by Sustainable Development Goals, Mauritius Vision 2030, Government Programme 2020-2024, the Health Sector Strategic Plan 2020-2024, the United Nations Strategic Partnership Framework 2019-2023, WHO's 13th General Programme of Work and the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2024-2028.
As for Dr Anne Marie Ancia, she underlined that Mauritius has achieved impressive results in improving the health of its population over the last two decades, such as increased life expectancy and the decrease in infant child mortality.
She also pointed out that Mauritius is moving in the right direction as regards achieving the 26 health indicators, out of which 14 have been achieved whilst 11 are on track and one target area relating to family planning is yet to be on track.
The impressive results in the health sector can be attributed to the laudable leadership, determination, and effective prioritisation by the country, she remarked.
As regards the Country Cooperation Strategy 2023-2026, Dr Anne Marie Ancia highlighted that it lays down the roadmap to realise the country's vision and objectives pertaining to the health sector. It is essentially guided by Mauritius' national priorities and is aligned to UN's strategic partnership goals, she pointed out.
She qualified the Country Cooperation Strategy 2023-2026 as the expression of the close collaboration between the Health Ministry and the Government and affirmed that through this endeavour the WHO seeks to support the Government of Mauritius in implementing its ambitious health agenda.
On her part, Ms Lisa Simrique Singh emphasised that healthy people are the foundation for healthy economies. Speaking on how the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the manner in which a health emergency can impact all sectors, she called for strong commitment and multisectoral coordination to advance the health agenda.
The UN Resident Coordinator further recalled that Mauritius and the UN shares a rich history of cooperation and added that that the Country Cooperation Strategy 2023-2026 reinforces the next steps for the UN and the WHO to support and promote health and wellness in Mauritius.
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The Country Cooperation Strategy 2023-2026
The Mauritius - WHO cooperation strategy lays down the framework for WHO's collaborative work with the Republic of Mauritius through four strategic priorities namely:
-Achieving Universal Health Coverage by building resilient health systems;
-Strengthening emergency preparedness and response;
-Promoting health and healthy environments; and
-Supporting the use of data and innovation for integrated and people-oriented care.
These strategic priorities are closely linked to the 'triple billion' goals of the WHO that is, one billion more people to benefit from Universal Health Coverage, one billion more people to be better protected from Health Emergencies and one Billion more people to enjoy better health and well-being.
