Today, November 5, the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and the World Health Organization (WHO) signed a two-year Cooperation Agreement. This Agreement will allow to continue cooperation with the WHO, to expand the population's access to quality health services, to develop and implement strategies and reforms of health financing aimed to achieve progress towards universal healthcare services coverage, to improve access to essential medicines, vaccines, diagnostics and equipment for primary healthcare, strengthen the state's preparedness for emergencies.

"The Cooperation Agreement provides a clear "road map" for our further cooperation. The funding envisaged under the Agreement is an important contribution to our joint efforts, because together with the ongoing technical support of the World Health Organization, especially at the regional level, it will significantly strengthen our capacity for change," said Maxym Stepanov, Minister of Health.

The Minister assured that Ukraine will fulfill the obligations set forth in the Agreement. He stressed that the WHO is an important partner for Ukraine, especially amid a pandemic. At the same time, Maxym Stepanov noted that the fight against the pandemic could not offset Ukraine's goal to implement an important process of health care reform.

"Our clear goal is to provide decent conditions for the provision of medical services for Ukrainians. The reform of healthcare sector is our priority, in particular, it concerns modernizing medicine, reducing corruption in this area and ensuring full protection," said Maxym Stepanov.

The Minister also expressed special gratitude for the inclusion of Ukraine into the list of priority countries in the WHO Special Initiative for Mental Health for the period covering 2019-2023.

Hans Kluge, the WHO Regional Director for Europe, also praised the results of cooperation between Ukraine and the World Health Organization.

"We appreciate our cooperation at the primary health care level. Together with the World Bank, we reviewed the progress of medical reforms. We are ready to support the preparation of the National Health Strategy, which will contain a long-term vision for the development of the health sector until 2030," he said.

In addition, the WHO will continue to support Ukraine in the fight against coronavirus disease.

It should be noted that the WHO is a specialized agency of the United Nations, which takes care of health problems worldwide. Its headquarters are located in Geneva (Switzerland). WHO includes 194 countries.