WASHINGTON, Sept 26, CMC – Heath officials from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) will join their counterparts from the Region of the Americas here next week for the 62nd Directing Council meeting of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
The September 29 to October 3, event, one of PAHO’s main governing bodies, will serve as a key platform to discuss and adopt policies and strategies that will define regional health priorities for the coming years, strengthening technical cooperation and collaboration among countries.
PAHO Director, Dr. Jarbas Barbosa as well as Albert Ramdin, the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesusare expeced to address the opening ceremony on Monday.
PAHO said that following the ceremony, Dr. Barbosa will present his annual report, highlighting progress and challenges in public health in the Americas, with a focus on disease elimination, emergency response, and strengthening health system resilience in the face of recent crises.
It said that throughout the week, delegates will review and discuss several critical issues for the region, including PAHO’s new Strategic Plan 2026–2031, the budget for 2026–2027 as well as an 2025-30 action plan on the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), which are the leading cause of death in the Americas.
PAHO said a policy to expand equitable access to high-cost and high-priced health technologies, aimed at reducing the financial burden of treatment on governments and patients.
It said that a new Strategy on Health and Migration 2026–2031, to improve access to health services for migrants, strengthen data and surveillance systems, and promote better integration within the context of increasing regional mobility will also be among agenda items.
Delegates will also review final reports on the Strategy for the Prevention and Control of NCDs, Health and Migration, and the Policy on Research for Health, as well as progress reports on increasing the production capacity for essential medicines and technologies, cooperation for health development, and implementation of the Sustainable Health Agenda for the Americas 2018–2030, among others.
The meeting here will lso coincide with the launch of the the Report of the World Bank-PAHO Lancet Americas Commission on Primary Health Care and Resilience in Latin America and the Caribbean as well as PAHO Award for Health Services Management and Leadership 2025.
CMC/2025