Special update on health emergencies presented at the 72nd session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean

15 October 2025, Cairo, Egypt - A special update on emergencies in the Eastern Mediterranean Region was presented today at the Seventy-second session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean (RC72). The three-day session, which began today in WHO's Regional Office in Cairo, brings together health ministers and high-level delegates from the Region's 22 Member States, and representatives from partner organizations and civil society.

"We meet amid profound uncertainty for our Region and for global health. Wars, disasters, displacement and declining aid are compounding one tragedy upon another. If we do not change course, these will be remembered as dark times. But there are those of us - including the people in this room -who still believe in the mandate of this Organization, who still believe in the right to health for all," said WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Dr Hanan Balkhy in her remarks at the RC72 opening ceremony.

The Eastern Mediterranean Region is home to the highest concentration of humanitarian emergencies globally. More than 115 million people - nearly one in six across the Region - require humanitarian assistance. WHO is currently responding to 15 graded emergencies in the Region, including eight at the highest level. The Eastern Mediterranean hosts nearly half of the world's internally displaced persons, and more than half of all refugees worldwide. Catastrophic humanitarian crises in Sudan and Gaza, and protracted emergencies in Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia and Syria, have pushed health systems to the edge - with some facing converging crises, such as the recent earthquakes in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, international humanitarian support is at a record low, threatening to reverse hard-won gains in health security, outbreak surveillance and control.

"The environment in which we operate is changing, and not for the better. We face shrinking humanitarian access, an erosion of International Humanitarian Law and a global funding landscape at breaking point. The Global Humanitarian Response Plan faces an 80% funding gap, a record low in support at a time of record-high needs. The humanitarian system is undergoing a reset, with hard choices and difficult trade-offs. For WHO, this means we are underfunded and overstretched but not deterred. We continue to deliver, because the cost of inaction is measured in lives lost," said Dr Annette Heinzelmann, Regional Emergency Director a.i., during the session.

Across the Region, WHO and partners have made significant progress despite the immense challenges. Last year, case fatality rates in eight of nine cholera outbreaks were maintained within international standards, at under 1%. Severe acute malnutrition cure rates for children admitted to over 600 WHO-supported stabilization centres exceeded 80%. In Gaza, WHO is the largest provider of essential medicines and supplies, delivering fuel and medical commodities to 51 partners in 32 facilities and enabling more than 22 million treatments and surgeries since October 2023. WHO has also supported the medical evacuation of 7841 patients, including 5405 children.

In Sudan, WHO continues to sustain hospitals and nutrition stabilization centres, deliver essential medicines and help contain outbreaks of cholera and measles amid mass displacement and famine conditions. More than 17 million people were reached with oral cholera vaccines between August 2024 and August 2025. WHO remains the sole provider of supplies to stabilization centres managing severe acute malnutrition with medical complications, supporting the treatment of nearly 30 000 severely malnourished children in the first nine months of 2025.

In Afghanistan, following the August earthquake, WHO deployed rapid-response teams within 24 hours, delivered over 52 metric tons of medical supplies and provided 13 000 consultations within days.

"The work that WHO and our partners do is vital to protecting health security and saving lives every single day. Without the lifeline that WHO provides, we would be witnessing far greater levels of death and disease. The emergencies programme has been the hardest hit area of WHO's work as a result of recent funding cuts. To sustain our ability to respond to urgent needs, we need your support," Dr Balkhy told ministers and delegates.

Member States acknowledged that health security is a collective responsibility, requiring greater investments in preparedness, resilience, cross-border collaboration and information-sharing, and noted how health emergencies not only cause immediate setbacks but also threaten long-term development gains. Sustained and predictable financing was highlighted as critical for preparedness and response, with WHO's Contingency Fund for Emergencies recognized as a vital mechanism, enabling immediate action when crises strike.

"Our appeal to you is simple, yet urgent," said Dr Heinzelmann, addressing Member States and delegations. "Help us sustain the capacity to respond to emergencies. Allocate funding to protect WHO's and Member States' emergency management functions. Champion the protection of health care and uphold the principles of humanity and International Humanitarian Law. And as the Pandemic Treaty takes shape, let us prepare together for the next global challenge. Because preparedness is not a cost. It is an investment in peace, in stability and in the lives of our people."