Zubair Qureshi
President Dr Arif Alvi has called for further enhancing the partnership between the World Health Organization (WHO) and the health authorities in Pakistan to effectively combat and overcome health challenges being faced by the country.
The president expressed these views while talking to the outgoing Country Director of the WHO, Dr Palitha Mahipala, who called on him at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, Thursday. Dr Mahipala joined as the CD of the WHO Pakistan in April 2019 and is now leaving after completing four years in Pakistan.
During his tenure as Head of the WHO, Dr Palitha Mahipala prepared and motivated his team to face challenging times first in the days of COVID-19 when entire Pakistan was almost shut down and all businesses closed. In cooperation with the local health authorities, the WFP engaged in a countrywide vaccination drive and updated the government about the latest trends.
Another challenge was the outbreak of diseases and access of the flood-hit communities to primary healthcare in the aftermath of the floods in 2021 and 2022 in various parts of Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
