60th Session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Western Pacific
Hong Kong (China)
21–25 September 2009
The sixtieth session of the World Health Organization Regional Committee for the Western Pacific has been held from 21 to 25 September 2009 in Hong Kong, China, formally known as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of China.
The opening ceremony began at 09:00 on 21 September at the Run Run Shaw Hall, first floor, the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine Jockey Club Building, 99 Wong Chuk Hang Road, Aberdeen.
The plenary session commenced on 21 September at 14:00 in the Grand Ballroom, Lower Level 1, Kowloon Shangri-La Hotel, 64 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui East, Kowloon.
Subsequent meetings from Tuesday, 22 September, to Friday, 25 September, were from 09:00 to 12:00 and from 14:00 to 17:00 at the same venue, with a 15-minute tea break in each period. Daily buffet lunch was served throughout the five-day event.
About WHO Regional Committee
WHO Regional Committee consists of representatives from the Region’s Member States and Associate Members who meet annually in September. In addition, representation includes Members responsible for areas in the Region, like France (for French Polynesia, New Caledonia and Wallis and Futuna), United Kingdom (for Pitcairn Islands), and United States of America (for American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands).
Areas such as Hong Kong (China) and Macao (China) also participate in the Regional Committee on their own in accordance with Article 47 of the WHO Constitution and with Resolution WHA2.103.
About WHO in the Western Pacific
The Western Pacific Region, one of the six regions of the World Health Organization, is home to approximately 1.6 billion people, nearly one-third of the world's population. It stretches over a vast area, from China in the north and west, to New Zealand in the south, and French Polynesia in the east. One of the most diverse of the WHO regions, the Western Pacific constitutes some of the world's least developed countries as well as the most rapidly emerging economies. It includes highly developed countries such as Australia, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea and Singapore; and fast growing economies such as China and Viet Nam. There are 37 Member States and areas in the Western Pacific Region.
About the meeting
The six WHO Regional Committees meet separately once every year to set policy and approve budgets and programs of work for their respective regions. Each meeting addresses the specific public health needs of the area represented by the region.
Ms. Zhao Ming (second from left), the director of international development department, He Eye Hospital, Shenyang, China, in the 60th session