‘We’ve Been Reminded by the Pandemic that Health Is Not a Cost’ – Sobita Gautam

Kathmandu: Sobita Gautam, a member of the parliament, a Health Committee member at the Inter-parliamentary Union (IPU) and the World Health Organization (WHO), addressing the event, emphasized the importance of creating a vital platform at the World Health Assembly.

In Nepal, the WHO had previously supported vaccine rollouts, improved surveillance, and equipped frontline workers with timely guidance, especially during the COVID-19  pandemic as well. “This further underscored the high need for a strong, well-funded WHO,” she stressed.

“We’ve been reminded by the pandemic that health is not a cost; it is the most vital investment for our societies,” she further added.

She, furthermore, warned against the dangers of reduced global funding, and emphasized that health crises transcended borders and require collective actions both by the nation itself together with the international institutions. 

“History won’t remember what we debated; it remembers what we delivered,” quoted Gautam as she concluded her speech at the prestigious Joint Dialogue by the Inter-Parliamentary (IPU) and the World Health Organization (WHO).