Vietnam highly values WHO’s close technical partnership: official
Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Lien Huong affirmed Vietnam’s appreciation of the World Health Organisation (WHO)’s close technical partnership with its Government, while attending the 76th World Health Assembly (WHA76) in Geneva on May 23.
Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Lien Huong (fourth from right), Ambassador Le Thi Tuyet Mai (fourth from left) - Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, WTO and other international organisations in Geneva, and other members of the Vietnamese delegation at the 76th World Health Assembly. (Photo: VNA)
Geneva (VNA) – Deputy Minister of HealthNguyen Thi Lien Huong affirmed Vietnam’s appreciation of the World Health Organisation(WHO)’s close technical partnership with its Government, while attending the 76th World Health Assembly (WHA76) in Geneva on May 23.
In her remarks, Huong said the WHA76takes place in coincidence with many important milestones of the World HealthOrganisation (WHO), including its 75th founding anniversary.
Vietnamhas gained a number of major healthcare achievements, including the average lifeexpectancy raised to over 75. It has also been pressing on with reforming thehealth sector to meet medical demand in the future, especially amid fastsocio-economic development and lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, she noted.
Mentioning WHO’s recent declaration of the end to the COVID-19pandemic as global health emergency of international concern, the Deputy Ministersaid Vietnam quickly carried out a large-scale vaccination campaign in2021 and 2022 and has ensured vaccine access nationwide.
Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Lien Huong addresses the 76th World Health Assembly. (Photo: VNA)
She cited statistics as showing that the country has reachedan average of 273.7 administered doses of COVID-19 vaccines every 100 people,1.6 times the global average of 170.1 and also higher than mostdeveloped nations. The rate of people fully vaccinated with primary doses is1.4 times while the rate of those given booster doses doubles the world’srespective averages.
Thanks to these efforts, since the beginning of 2022, Vietnamhas shifted to a period of sustainably managing the pandemic, whichmeans balancing socio-economic development and public health measures toprotect vulnerable groups and the healthcare system, Huong went on.
Highlighting WHO’s close technicalpartnership with the Vietnamese Government, the official added the country is proud of allthe health achievements obtained with support from WHO during the pandemic andover the past years, and hopes to continue this partnership./.
Moving toward the goal of universal health care coverage by 2030, the Vietnamese Party and State have for years put the protection of and care for people’s health at the top, and the focus is bringing about encouraging results.
The Health Ministry, in collaboration with the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, the Vietnam Youth Federation, the Vietnam Young Physicians' Association, and the representative office of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Vietnam, held a meeting in Hanoi on April 8 in response to the 2023 World Health Day themed “Health for all”.
Dr Angela Pratt, World Health Organisation (WHO) Representative in Vietnam, on May 8 said it was too soon to claim that COVID-19 is just seasonal flu despite similarities between the two viruses.
The Government Office has issued an official document on COVID-19 prevention and control in the new context, mentioning the possibility of announcing the end of the pandemic.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) is urgently contacting to find a source of rare drugs to support Vietnam in treating botulinum poisoning cases, according to the Drug Administration of Vietnam (DAV) under the Ministry of Health.
Vietnam now boasts a nationwide healthcare network with 1,665 hospitals, 384 of which are non-public, supported by local commune- and ward-level stations. At the end of 2024, hospital bed capacity reached 34 per 10,000 people, slightly above the global average.
The 56-year-old patient from Quang Tri province was discharged in stable condition as he no longer experienced shortness of breath and was able to walk, move around, and eat normally.
Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Vu Trung, Director of the Pasteur Institute, said that under the MoU, the two sides committed to promoting diverse and practical collaborative activities, including joint conferences and workshops, exchanges of scholars, researchers and students, sharing academic materials, and the development of specific programmes and projects in scientific research, training, and epidemic prevention.
TytoCare, a leading Israeli telemedicine company based in Netanya, is willing to work with Vietnamese regulators, insurers, and healthcare providers to develop a sustainable digital health ecosystem.
The partnership is under the framework of a Memorandum of Understanding on the development and implementation of the National Action Plan on Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control, signed in Hanoi on July 22.
An estimated 7 million Vietnamese are currently living with diabetes, but about 50% remain undiagnosed, a dangerous gap that is fuelling serious, preventable complications and increasing the burden on the healthcare system.
In 2024, Vietnam achieved 99% coverage for the first dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine, up from 80% in 2023. Immunisation coverage in the country has not only rebounded to the high levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic but has now surpassed the rates recorded in 2019.
Health authorities in HCM City have issued an urgent alert after six people died from dengue fever, amid a spike in infections driven by the onset of the rainy season.
During the peak months of July and August 2025, the National Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion (NIHBT) needs at least 90,000 units of blood to supply 180 hospitals in the northern region. However, despite continuous efforts, the reserve blood is still short of 30,000 units.
The Hanoi ceremony highlighted efforts to ensure all citizens, especially women and youth, can access accurate information and healthcare services to make informed reproductive choices.
After such a long time, the law has revealed many limitations, prompting the Ministry of Health (MoH) to gather opinions to amend the law to give more chances to thousands of patients every year.
Currently, cardiovascular specialists from the 108 Military Central Hospital are working alongside a team of Prof.Dr. Jan D. Schmitto, Deputy Director of MHH’s Department of Cardiac, Thoracic, Transplantation and Vascular Surgery on clinical trials for MCS devices, implanted in heart failure patients either as a bridge to transplantation or as permanent treatment.
The centre not only serves residents living on the island, but also receives tens of thousands of visitors every year, according to Assoc Prof Dr Tang Chi Thuong, Director of the HCM CIty Department of Health.
Not only does Vietnam attract international tourists with its landscapes, culture, and cuisine, but it is also gradually becoming a reliable destination for medical treatment, offering high-quality services at reasonable costs.
Over the past six months, 150 communal health stations in provinces including Ha Giang, Bac Kan, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Lai Chau, Yen Bai, Tay Ninh, Hau Giang, Ben Tre and Ca Mau have been equipped with information technology systems. In addition, 117 key provincial healthcare workers have received training, with thousands more expected to follow.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the Ministry of Health swiftly launched a telemedicine programme, connecting more than 1,000 medical establishments nationwide. The model, which remains in operation, has benefited tens of thousands of patients, including foreign nationals.
After more than three weeks of intensive treatment, the patient's pneumonia improved, breathing stabilised, sedation was reduced, and the breathing tube was removed. He is now conscious, able to eat orally, and in recovery.
Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Lien Huong (fourth from right), Ambassador Le Thi Tuyet Mai (fourth from left) - Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, WTO and other international organisations in Geneva, and other members of the Vietnamese delegation at the 76th World Health Assembly. (Photo: VNA) 
Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Lien Huong addresses the 76th World Health Assembly. (Photo: VNA) 
