he Regional Health Alliance (RHA) convenes today to accelerate efforts to improve maternal, newborn and child health and support immunization and polio eradication across the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region.

The meeting will gather representatives from nine UN agencies and six priority countries – Afghanistan, Djibouti, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.

Hosted by WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, the one-day meeting aims to strengthen support for Member States as they implement national strategies to reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality, eradicate polio and boost immunization coverage through the Expanded Programme on Immunization.

Recent data indicate that 60 countries globally are not on track to meet the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets on under-5 mortality, and 65 are off track for the neonatal mortality target. In 2023, the six  priority countries accounted for almost 85% of under-5 deaths (694 000 out of 812 000) in the Eastern Mediterranean Region and recorded some of the highest maternal mortality rates globally, ranging from 155 to 563 per 100 000 live births.