WHO Role in Pakistan Medical Sector

The World Health Organization acts as Pakistan's principal international technical partner, providing policy guidance, normative standards, emergency coordination, capacity building, and strategic financing to strengthen the national health system and disease-specific programmes. WHO leads health-sector coordination between federal and provincial authorities, aligns donor efforts with national priorities, and supports the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination in planning and strategy development.

Strategic Priorities and How WHO Delivers Support

WHO's work in Pakistan focuses on three integrated priorities: reaching every mother and child with essential services, protecting populations from epidemics and emerging threats, and leading health-sector coordination and system strengthening across provinces. Support is delivered through technical assistance for policy and guidelines, laboratory and surveillance strengthening, workforce development, digital health tools, and procurement support for diagnostics and essential supplies.

Actions Against Tuberculosis in Pakistan

WHO and the Government of Pakistan have repeatedly called for urgent investment and coordinated action to end TB, emphasizing the need to commit resources for detection, treatment, and program expansion. WHO supports:

• Scale-up of molecular diagnostics
• Standardized treatment regimens including for drug-resistant TB
• Expansion of community-based case finding and contact tracing
• Integration of TB services with diabetes and HIV programmes to manage co-morbidities

On World TB Day events, WHO has advocated for mobilizing partners and increasing domestic and donor financing to close the large case-detection and treatment gap.

Measures Targeting Lung Diseases Beyond TB

WHO's technical support for respiratory health extends beyond TB to include:

• Capacity building for surveillance of acute respiratory infections
• Strengthening hospital oxygen systems and critical care capacity
• Promoting air pollution mitigation within health planning
• Supporting national guidelines for chronic respiratory disease management
• Assisting laboratories with molecular testing platforms that can detect a range of respiratory pathogens
• Integrating respiratory surveillance into routine public-health data flows

Polio Eradication Support and Activities

WHO remains a lead partner in Pakistan's polio programme, offering operational guidance, surveillance and environmental sampling capacity, and coordination for National Immunization Days and targeted outbreak responses. WHO's support includes:

• Strengthening AFP (acute flaccid paralysis) surveillance
• Expanding environmental sewage surveillance to detect poliovirus circulation
• Advising on campaign microplanning and vaccinator safety and access in hard-to-reach areas
• Aligning international donor inputs with national eradication strategies
• Supporting rapid-response mechanisms to contain any detected virus

WHO Investments and Resource Mobilization in Pakistan

WHO's Investment Case and biennial planning documents outline prioritized funding needs across maternal-child health, epidemic preparedness, routine immunization, and disease control programmes. These documents are used to catalyze donor commitments and direct WHO's technical and commodity support on the ground. WHO channels resources for:

• Laboratory strengthening
• Procurement of diagnostics (including molecular platforms for TB and respiratory pathogens)
• Expansion of cold-chain and vaccine logistics
• Training for frontline health workers
• Digital tools for campaign monitoring and health information systems

Immediate Improvements WHO Advocates and Supports

WHO advocates targeted actions that Pakistan can implement with partner support:

• Scaling up case-finding and universal access to diagnostics for TB and respiratory infections
• Sustained funding for routine immunization and polio campaigns combined with stronger surveillance
• Investments in oxygen and critical-care readiness for severe respiratory disease
• Expanded environmental surveillance networks
• Strengthening primary health care to manage chronic lung disease and improve early detection of TB

WHO also supports policy work on pollution control and tobacco cessation as part of respiratory disease prevention strategies.

Conclusion and Outlook

WHO's role in Pakistan is multidimensional: technical adviser, coordinator of partners, convenor of resources, and implementer of targeted health-strengthening interventions. Its ongoing investment case and collaborative campaigns for TB, polio, and respiratory health aim to close service gaps, modernize diagnostics and surveillance, and build resilient systems that protect vulnerable populations. Sustained domestic commitment combined with WHO-led coordination and investment will be essential to translate these technical gains into lasting public-health improvements in Pakistan.