Welcome remarks at the Subregional Consultation on Improving ESR Designs (Boulevard Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 5 September 2007)

Dato Dr. Hj. Ramlee Rahmat
Director, Disease Control Division
Department of Public Health
Ministry of Health, Malaysia

Dr. Han Tieru
Representative for Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, and Singapore
World Health Organization (WHO)

Dr. Vincent de Wit
Principal Health Specialist
Southeast Asia Regional Department, ADB

Dr. Robert Bernstein, Team Leader, RETA 6305
Distinguished Participants, Friends, and Team Members

Salamat pagi dan Salamat Datang ke Kuala Lumpur!

On behalf of the Consultant Team to this ADB Regional Technical Assistance Project for Strengthening Epidemiological Surveillance and Response (ESR) for Communicable Diseases in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore (otherwise known as RETA 6305), I wish to extend a very warm welcome to you all to this beautiful city of Kuala Lumpur and to this Subregional Technical Consultation on Improving ESR Designs.

This subregional workshop is the second in a series of technical workshops and consultations planned for implementation under this ADB-financed Project, the first one held in Jakarta, Indonesia in November 2006, and the next one hopefully to be held in Manila sometime next year.
As you may be aware, this Project is aimed at improving the capacity of the governments of Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines to conduct disease surveillance and effectively respond to the threat of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) within and across the three countries. It also aimed to promote subregional cooperation in communicable disease control and the early recognition, containment, and prevention of domestic and international spread of epidemic outbreaks through networking, information and experience sharing, and the establishment or strengthening of mechanisms that will enable the three countries to support each other in ESR.

The Project consists of three components: (i) Component A – ESR Systems Analysis and Plan Formulation; (ii) Component B – Systems Development; and (iii) Component C – Innovative Measures to Enhance the Performance of ESR Systems. The Project was originally conceived to have an 18-month implementation period, but has been extended by ADB for another six months, or up to April 2008, to enable the countries to substantially complete the implementation of their proposed work plans.

From TA commencement in mid-June 2006 up to the time of the Jakarta Workshop in November 2006, preparatory activities were undertaken in the three countries, including formalities related to the participation of the three countries in the Project and the conduct of ESR system assessment. Subsequently, the concerned health ministries set out to initiate their various proposed activities. Since January of this year, significant accomplishments have been made by the respective health ministries in the implementation of their ESR work plans, which will be reported to us in detail by designated speakers today and tomorrow.

This KL Workshop is meant to provide a forum for technical exchange and experience sharing among the three countries and other agencies and, in addition, to (i) review the progress of implementation of the ESR workplans of the three countries, (ii) discuss ESR design issues and options, and (iii) recommend measures to improve ESR designs.

We thank Dato Dr. Rahmat and his staff for their willingness to host this important Workshop and the field visit to the National Public Health Laboratory on Friday, the 7th of September. We are grateful to ADB for providing the funds that made this Workshop possible, and we appreciate the participation of WHO officials and the representatives of the health ministries of Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines in this two-day event.

On behalf of ADB and our Consultant Team, I wish you an enjoyable, albeit brief, stay in Kuala Lumpur and look forward to two days of productive discussions, interactions, and experience sharing among colleagues in the health sector.

Terima kasih banyak.

Mabuhay!