Communicable diseases like AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases have been the scourge of millions in South-East Asia, home to a quarter of the world’s population. For decades, these diseases have taken innumerable lives and devastated societies as well as entire economies among the 11 member countries of the WHO’s South-East Asia Region. 

Today, there is a paradigm shift underway as governments and international bodies undertake the ambitious task of ending these diseases once and for all by 2030. The target was set at the historic meeting in New York as part of the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the UN General Assembly on 25 September 2015. 

Already, the fight back by governments, international agencies, civil society and communities has helped reduce the burden of these diseases significantly. Thanks to the political commitment of the governments and the dedicated work of thousands of health professionals, the tide has turned definitively against all the major communicable diseases in the Region. 

  • Eliminate Measles and Rubella by 2023.
  • Finish the task of eliminating NTDs and other diseases on the verge of elimination.
  • Further strengthen national capacity building for preventing and combating Antimicrobial Resistance.
  • Accelerate efforts to End TB by 2030.


Director

Dr Suman Rijal

Director, Communicable Diseases Department