Jordan is taking part in the 2023 Eastern Mediterranean Region Healthy Cities Conference, organized by the Qatari Ministry of Public Health and the World Health Organization (WHO), which kicked off on Tuesday in Doha. The Minister of Public Health of Qatar, Hanan Mohammed Al Kuwari, and WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, Ahmed Al-Mandhari, opened the 3-day conference, according to a statement. A number of Jordanian speakers, including Dr. Ayoub Al-Jawaldeh, WHO’s Regional Adviser for Nutrition in the Eastern Mediterranean, will participate in the conference. Al-Jawaldeh has been a part of the organization since 2009 and has been working to improve nutrition in 22 countries in the region. His efforts are focused on tackling the double burden of malnutrition and diet-related non-communicable diseases. He has over 150 scientific publications and books to his name. Qatar is the first country where all municipalities received the title of Healthy City from the World Health Organization, in addition to Qatar Foundation’s Education City being recognized as a Healthy Education City and Qatar University as a Healthy University, said Kuwari in her opening remarks. She added that it is possible to exchange knowledge and experiences with other countries in the Eastern Mediterranean Region and with WHO Healthy City Networks across various regions through this conference. Al-Mandhari reiterated the Healthy Cities program’s important role in creating a multisectoral platform for health promotion and well-being: “Healthy Cities can contribute to accelerate the achievement of our regional and global objectives and our progress towards the health-related Sustainable Development Goals. They can also contribute to combat noncommunicable diseases and support the regional implementation of the new ‘Global framework for integrating well-being into public health utilizing a health promotion approach’.” “Healthy Cities: A Multisectoral Approach to Health and Well-being” is the main theme of the conference, at which 43 local and international experts will speak. About 1300 participants are expected to attend the conference in total, both in person and online, over the 3 days. The conference particularly targets professionals including allied health, complementary medicine, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, medicine, policy makers, urban developers, academics, civil society, and local community members.
Source: Jordan News Agency