Annual South-East Asia regional meeting on Operational Planning for Implementation of the Global Influenza Strategy and preparedness for other respiratory viruses in 2025

Overview

The WHO Regional Offices for South-East Asia and the Western Pacific alternately host the annual bi-regional meeting of national influenza centres and influenza surveillance. The South-East Asia Regional Annual Meeting on operational planning for influenza and other respiratory pathogens is held separately a day before the bi-regional meeting. In 2025, this meeting took place in Manila, Philippines, on 19 November. It served as a platform for Member States to discuss priority activities related to the Global Influenza Strategy and other key WHO initiatives, as well as to conduct operational planning for the forthcoming year. The meeting was attended by representatives from Member States of the SE Asia Region and the Regional and country offices. Discussions focused on implementation updates from 2024 in programmatic, surveillance and laboratory areas. Participants collectively defined WHO’s operational priorities in programmatic and laboratory areas related to influenza and other respiratory pathogens. This report presents the proceedings and the operational priorities identified for 2025