WHO/Europe launches first-ever technical advisory group on disability and health

18 November 2024 

News release

WHO/Europe has launched a new technical advisory group (TAG) on disability and health. This is the first-ever TAG on disability and will inform WHO’s actions as it works with countries to build disability-inclusive health systems across the WHO European Region. 

Officially launched at a technical meeting on 13 November 2024, the new TAG will be specifically tasked with advising on the implementation of the “WHO European framework for action to achieve the highest standard of health for persons with disabilities, 2022–2030”, unanimously adopted at the 72nd session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe in 2022. 

“The launch of this new advisory group marks an important milestone in our work promoting the health and rights of people living with disabilities across the Region, and we are in fact quite overdue when it comes to making concrete progress,” explains Shirin Kiani, Technical Officer for Disability, Assistive Technology and Rehabilitation, and Ear/Eye Care, at WHO/Europe.

 “The collective knowledge and experiences of the TAG will prove invaluable for developing proposals on the strategies and actions that governments, organizations representing persons with disabilities and other stakeholders can take together to strengthen disability-inclusive health systems,” she added. 

Gathering expertise

Members of the TAG include appointees from 23 countries across the European Region who will work as part of the group for the next 2 years. They represent a broad range of disciplines relevant to disability and health, from statistics, inclusive policy and rights advocacy, to lived experience with disability, habilitation/rehabilitation and social inclusion. These members serve in their personal capacities as academics and researchers, as well as bringing expertise from health-care bodies, national public health institutes and civil society organizations. 

Vugar Mammadov is one of the TAG co-chairs and also works as Deputy Chairman of the Board for the state disability agency in Azerbaijan. He outlined what he sees as the role of the TAG: “Many persons with disabilities in our region have unmet health-care needs so there is an urgency to develop policies and actions to address this. The TAG is determined to achieve the highest standard of health for persons with disabilities by advising WHO on the most effective, innovative and evidence-based approaches available”. 

At the core of the TAG’s mandate is providing advice to WHO/Europe on effective and innovative approaches to promote the health of persons with disabilities and how these might be replicated in the design, implementation and evaluation of disability strategies within health-care systems across the Region. As part of their work, they will help evaluate programmes, initiatives and evidence, share practical experience from across countries on best practice, and advise on the investments health authorities need to make to improve health access and the health outcomes of persons with disabilities.

This article was originally published by the World Health Organization.