The Health Minister Dr. Paul Popora Bosawai noted the draft amendment plans to the International Health Regulation (2005), and coordinated regional approach outlined in the document of the Western Pacific Region, 76th Regional Committee Meeting, will represent a transformative opportunity to strengthen Solomon Islands health security architecture.
Minister Hon. Dr Bosawai strongly emphasized that Solomon Islands has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to implementing IHR core capacities.
“Last year, we completed our first Joint External Evaluation (JEE), engaging stakeholders from multiple ministries and sectors. Building on the JEE findings, we conducted our first national risk profiling and emergency workforce mapping in April this year, using the WHO methodology, and bringing together participants from health, environment, security, and justice sectors to prioritize health security risks”, said Dr. Bosawai.
Therefore, he stated the ministry included in its annual operational plan the development of its first costed, multisectoral National Action Plan for Health Security aligned with the IHR (2005) assessment outcomes to guide future investments and strengthen its IHR core capacities.
“We are advancing preparations for designating Munda International Airport in Western Province as our fourth Point of Entry, thereby strengthening our border health security capacities in a province with critical international connectivity. In addition, in August, we conducted a Provincial Emergency Preparedness and Response Training, addressing JEE-identified gaps in provincial operational readiness and workforce surge capacity. Our commitment extends beyond national-level planning to concrete operational readiness at provincial levels.
“Recognizing that robust surveillance systems are fundamental to early detection and rapid response, Solomon Islands have undertaken twice, this year initiatives that bring together health, agriculture, environment, disaster management, biosecurity, and border control sectors to systematically map the existing surveillance systems and develop a collaborative surveillance roadmap that integrates human, animal, and environmental health data through a One Health approach”, said Dr. Bosawai.
He further stated the multi-sectoral coordination meetings are now embedded in the ministry’s annual operational plan to ensure sustainability and continuous improvement of its early detection and response capabilities, directly implementing IHR core capacity requirements for surveillance and information sharing.
“Solomon Islands fully supports the priority actions outlined in the implementation plan. We are committed to designating our National IHR Authority, integrating the pandemic emergency definition into our national preparedness plans, and strengthening our multisectoral coordination mechanisms through our One Health Coordination Committee”, said Dr. Bosawai.
He acknowledged WHO’s technical support through the Asia Pacific Health Action Framework platform and look forward to actively contributing to regional technical consultations to identify and implement measures that strengthen our collective operational readiness.
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