The healthiest city in MENA region is...

Abdulla Ali Al Mahyan addresses Sharjah government officials during a brainstorming session for the healthy city programme

Sharjah is now the healthiest city in the Middle East and Africa region with an impressive score of 88 per cent, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The 'Sharjah Healthy City' programme commenced in April 2012, and was registered within the WHO regional healthy city network. The initiative was mooted to put health at the top of the development agenda of the emirate.
A letter of cooperation was signed between Government of Sharjah and WHO aiming to create and improve the social and health environment in the city. Sharjah is the only city in the region among several countries across the globe that have registered to become a healthy city.
Stakeholders from various Sharjah government departments related to the healthy city programme assembled at the Sharjah Health Authority headquarters to share their strategies. The stakeholders brainstormed during the meeting to ensure that the city scores higher during the next evaluation by WHO in the coming years.
"To move to the next level, in 2015, Sharjah was required to achieve 80 per cent of the WHO indicators in different domains like health development, community based engagements, education and literacy, skill development, water, sanitation and air and emergency preparedness. However, Sharjah exceeded expectations and has been awarded as the 'Health City' with an 88 per cent score in 2015," said Abdulla Ali Al Mahyan, Chairman of SHA (Sharjah Health Authority) and SHCC (Sharjah Healthcare City).
According to WHO officials, Sharjah will also be a regional training centre for other cities seeking an endorsement to join the programme.
asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com