Iranian Health Minister Seyed Hassan Qazizadeh Hashemi plans to leave Tehran for Tunis tomorrow to attend the 61st meeting of the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean.

Hashemi is to address the meeting, which is to be held in the North African country from 19 to 22 October 2014, as the head of the Group of Five (G5) which includes Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq and the World Health Organization.

The participating delegates will discuss and agree on issues relating to public health, set policy and approve the program and budget for WHO’s activities in the region.

On the sidelines of the two-day event, the Iranian minister is to hold separate talks with WHO Director General Margaret Chan as well as a number of his counterparts from other participating countries.

WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.
 

News ID 187281