The Ministry of Health will chair seven meetings on health-related issues during the third Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM3) and related meetings scheduled for August 18-30 in Ho Chi Minh City, said an official from the ministry.

Nguyen Manh Cuong, Deputy Director of the Health Ministry’s International Cooperation Department, said at a press conference in Ha Noi on August 11 that the meetings will approve relevant strategies and policies in the APEC region as well as action plans of special working groups.

Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien will preside over the seventh High-Level Meeting on Health and Economy slated for August 23-28, he said, adding that the event is expected to help promote Viet Nam’s initiative in inclusive economic, financial and social development through the building of a sustainable financial system in public health care and a roadmap that provides all people with health services.

The meeting is projected to issue a joint declaration and recommendations which will be sent to the APEC Finance Ministers’ Meeting and the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in November 2017 in the central city of Da Nang, Cuong said.

It is expected to bring together 280 domestic and international delegates, including representatives from the World Health Organisation (WHO), the UN Population Fund and the World Bank, he added.

Within the framework of SOM3, Minister Tien is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with US Secretary of Health and Human Services Thomas Price and Japanese Senator Keizo Takemin, and met with representatives of APEC partners and relevant organisations, he said.

There will be a multi-stakeholder forum on investing in healthy and active ageing for sustainable growth from August 15-17, where 200 delegates will share information and give recommendations to deal with the population aging problem.

They will also discuss health care models in the community, how to improve capacity for health workers, and the building of a regional cooperation network in this sector, Cuong said.

(Source: VNA)