Lai says Taiwan would boost global health role if it joined WHO

Taipei, May 18 (CNA) President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) said Monday that Taiwan would be able to make greater contributions to global health if it were a member of the World Health Organization (WHO).

In a prerecorded video message in English for the Taiwan Global Health Forum Series, held to coincide with the 79th World Health Assembly (WHA), Lai noted Taiwan has long played an active role in global health and remains committed to sharing its experiences as a responsible and reliable partner.

"Our world is seeing many profound changes. Technology is developing fast, populations are aging, and new infectious diseases continue to emerge. Therefore, we bear greater responsibilities than ever before," Lai said.

He added that, as Taiwan's first president with a medical background, he is eager to join forces to build a "Healthy Taiwan."

In the video, Lai said Taiwan would share its vision and engage in dialogue with attending participants on three key areas at the forum: digital health and artificial intelligence (AI) governance, cancer policy and innovation, and global efforts to eliminate hepatitis C.

Digital health and AI are reshaping healthcare, and Taiwan is building a framework for responsible governance to ensure medical AI is safe, effective and trustworthy, Lai added.

"Taiwan's booming digital health industry will keep driving innovation. With tools like medical AI and robotics, and even the medical metaverse, we can enhance precision health and quality of care in every way," he said.

On cancer, the president said Taiwan is strengthening prevention and treatment through early screening, precision medicine and improved access to innovative therapies, while also establishing a fund for new cancer drugs and updating the National Health Insurance (NHI) system to ensure timely, affordable and high-quality care for all patients.

Lastly, on hepatitis C, Lai emphasized that Taiwan achieved elimination five years ahead of the WHO's 2030 target, crediting strong governance and the NHI system for integrating screening, treatment and prevention into a unified strategy.

Taiwan aims to share its experience and learn from global partners, adding that international cooperation is essential to achieving the long-term goal of eliminating hepatitis C, Lai said.

"By joining the WHO, Taiwan could better ensure the right to health for all our people, and do even more to support the rest of the world," he added.

Organized by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the two-day forum is being held at Hotel President Wilson in Geneva, Switzerland, from May 18-19, coinciding with the 79th WHA which runs from May 18-23 in the same city.

For the 10th consecutive year, Taiwan has not received an invitation to attend the WHA, and China said last week that it had decided not to agree to the "Taiwan region" participating in this year's assembly.

Taiwan has not attended the WHA since 2016, when it participated as an observer during a period of warmer cross-strait relations with Beijing.

Instead, Taiwan has been staging events each year to coincide with the assembly in Geneva, where the WHO is headquartered and the WHA is usually held.