Myanmar's Minister of Health attended the 10th Asia-Pacific Leaders’ Summit on Malaria Elimination, it has been reported.

On June 6, a Myanmar delegation led by Union Minister for Health Dr. Thet Khaing Win attended the 10th Asia-Pacific Leaders’ Summit on Malaria Elimination in Vientiane, Laos, at the invitation of the Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. The meeting was jointly organized by the Lao Ministry of Health and the Asia Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance (APLMA).

During the opening ceremony, Lao Prime Minister H.E. Mr. Sonexay Siphandone delivered the keynote address. Lao Minister of Health H.E. Madam Baykham Khattiya and Myanmar’s Union Minister also delivered remarks on progress achieved toward malaria elimination by 2030, emerging challenges, and the need to strengthen cooperation among countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion, particularly neighboring border-sharing nations. They also discussed recommendations and priority actions to accelerate malaria elimination efforts.

The Union Minister and delegation later participated in a high-level roundtable discussion titled “GMS Malaria Elimination in 2030: Celebrating Progress and Acknowledging the Need for a Differentiated Approach.”

The session was attended by health ministers, deputy ministers, senior health officials from Greater Mekong Subregion countries, APLMA representatives, and malaria control and elimination experts. During the discussion, the Myanmar delegation outlined future priorities and measures required to achieve the country’s malaria elimination goals by 2030.

Subsequently, health ministers, deputy ministers, and senior representatives from Greater Mekong Subregion countries signed a renewed reaffirmation of the Joint Call to Action for Malaria Elimination in the Greater Mekong Subregion, originally endorsed in Nay Pyi Taw in 2018.

In the afternoon, the Union Minister, accompanied by Myanmar Ambassador to Laos U Aung Ko, met with Dr. Yong Zhang, Vice Minister of the National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China, and his delegation at the Holiday Inn & Suites Vientiane conference venue. The two sides held frank and friendly discussions on enhancing Myanmar-China cooperation in malaria prevention and control along the border regions, as well as in the prevention and control of other communicable diseases.

Later in the evening, the Union Minister met with a Lao health delegation led by Health Minister  Madam Baykham Khattiya. The discussions focused on strengthening Myanmar-Laos cooperation in the health sector, including the possibility of signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two countries’ health ministries, cooperation in pharmaceutical and vaccine production, and closer collaboration on broader public health initiatives.