BRIEFDecember 7, 2022

Podcast on the state of UHC in Southeast Asia and the Pacific post-pandemic

podcast on state of UHC in EAP post pandemic

Hear a panel of World Bank experts discuss where the state of Universal Health Coverage stands in Southeast Asia and the Pacific in the wake of the pandemic and what Covid-19 has revealed about the interplay between global health security and UHC. They also discussed how the Bank is working together with partners like Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to strengthen health systems in the region.

Podcast

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the progress countries across East Asia and the Pacific have made to advance universal health coverage (UHC). A recent episode of the Contain This podcast, produced by Australia’s Indo-Pacific Centre for Health Security, looked at the commitments, challenges and progress to UHC in the region.

Jane Pepperall, Senior Health Advisor for Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spoke with Dr Toomas Palu, adviser on global coordination at the World Bank's Health, Nutrition and Population Global Practice; Dr Aparnaa Somanathan, practice manager for Health, Nutrition and Population for the East Asia Pacific region; Dr Wayne Irava, World Bank health specialist based in Solomon Islands; and Chindavanh Vongsaly, World Bank health specialist based in Vientiane, Laos PDR.

The discussion covered the intersection between global health security and UHC, and how the Advance UHC Multi-Donor Trust Fund is helping strengthen health systems and support innovative ways of progressing UHC.

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