Faroes apply for associate membership of WHO

The government agreed earlier this week to apply for associate membership of the World Health Organization (WHO).

The application will be sent shortly, in time for processing at the WHO’s general assembly in May.

According to health minister Kaj Leo Johannesen, the Covid-19 pandemic is making a Faroese associate membership of WHO more relevant than ever.

“This membership will significantly strengthen our health system in general,” he says.

“It will, in addition, not only ensure us prompt information if and when other pandemics arise; it will also make it easier to shed light on Faroese medical research internationally.”

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The first steps toward associate membership of WHO were taken a few years ago.

In 2019, Sirið Stenberg, the health minister at the time, had a meeting with European WHO officials. This meeting prompted the Permanent Mission of Denmark to the United Nations in Geneva to look into the possibilities of a closer collaboration between the WHO and the Faroe Islands.

Only sovereign states are eligible for full membership status of the WHO. Countries with limited sovereignty can be assigned associate membership status, which grants them the right of speech and access to all board meetings as well as the general assembly.

Associate members may also submit proposals, but they have no voting rights.

Read the Faroese version of this article here

Translated by prosa.fo

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