Implementation of international health regulations in the African Region

Abstract

The International Health Regulations (2005), hereafter referred to as “the IHR” or “Regulations” are legally binding global instruments for WHO and Member States. The states parties to these regulations have agreed to comply with the rules therein to secure international health by ensuring maximum global public health security while minimizing interference with international transport and trade. The IHR were adopted on 23 May 2005 and entered into force on 15 June 2007. 2. The fifty-sixth session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa called for the implementation of the Regulations in the context of the Integrated Disease Surveillance (IDS) Strategy.1 Therefore, all Member States are required to fully implement the IHR by June 2012. 3. Resolutions WHA58.32 and WHA61.23 highlighted the obligations of states parties to the IHR. These included establishing an IHR national focal point (NFP) able to urgently communicate between signatory states and WHO; designating both the authority responsible for the implementation of health measures and the experts for the IHR Roster; developing required minimum core capacities and enacting appropriate legal and administrative instruments; mobilizing resources through collaboration and partnership building. The present document provides a progress report on the implementation of the IHR in Member States as of March 2009.