Statement at the World Health Organisation (WHO) Executive Board Meeting

17 Jan 2005

By Dr Balaji Sadasivan, Senior Minister Of State For Information, Communications And The Arts and Health

Venue: Geneva

Dr Lee Jong Wook

Director-General WHO

Mr Gunnarsson

Chairman of the WHO Executive Board

Members of the WHO Executive Board

The Indian Ocean tsunamis on 26 Dec 2004 was one of the worst natural disasters in history, with over 168,000 deaths. We join others in extending our condolences to the families of all those countries who were affected.

Immediate Assistance

In the aftermath, the world has responded quickly and generously, both in terms of financial aid, and in the form of rescue missions, medical support teams and emergency supplies.

Just as it did during the SARS epidemic, the WHO demonstrated keen leadership with its highly-commendable and speedy response to the disaster. The WHO has coordinated between governments and organisations to provide much-needed aid, issued alerts to countries on the risks of subsequent disease outbreaks, provided public health guidance, and ensured access to healthcare. The WHO also helped to co-ordinate the delivery of medical supplies to ensure that medicines are available when and where needed.

One of the many lessons that we have learnt from this disaster is the need for preparedness and capacity building.

Singapore is a small country and what we can do represents only a small fraction of the global effort. We are committed in giving our support to the WHO. We have assisted the WHO in ferrying relief supplies to Aceh, and have separately offered the use of our air and naval bases as staging areas for relief operations, as well as office space, telecommunications and logistics facilities in view of Singapore's proximity to Aceh and other affected areas.

As the search and rescue phase winds down, the next pressing task is the rebuilding of public infrastructure and capacity. This will not be a small task, and the global community will need to sustain its efforts for rebuilding and translate rebuilding plans into action.

In this regard, the WHO will play a critical leadership role in the months ahead. We urge member states to give their fullest support to the WHO in its endeavour. Thank you, Mr Chairman.