The Maldives has received an international award for advances in primary healthcare, recognising work by the Ministry of Health, Family and Welfare and the World Health Organization (WHO) to revitalise primary healthcare services.
The Asia-Pacific Action Alliance on Human Resources for Health (AAAH) presented the award to the ministry at its 14th conference in Bali, Indonesia. The award recognises the Maldives’ progress and ongoing work in primary healthcare and public health, including the contribution of the ministry’s Primary Health Care Revitalisation Team in partnership with the WHO country office in the Maldives.
The ministry described the award as a milestone in its efforts to strengthen primary healthcare nationwide and advance universal health coverage.
The Maldives was one of two recipients in the Primary Health Care Team category. The biennial conference recognised four recipients from 174 nominations, with the other two awards going to recipients in the Health Profession Education and Health Worker Well-Being categories. Speaking to PSM News, Director General of Health Services Dr Ahmed Ashraf noted that numerous countries received nominations and that countries outside the Asia-Pacific region were eligible and had also competed.
Director General Dr Ashraf explained that the award recognised the Primary Health Care Revitalisation Programme, which began as a pilot in Faafu Atoll and which the ministry and WHO continue to run jointly. The programme has two phases, beginning with the training needed to put it into practice. That training is now complete on all islands.
With training complete, the ministry and WHO have begun implementing the programme in Faafu Atoll. Director General Dr Ashraf explained that the next step would be to extend the programme across the Maldives.