​Brunei Darussalam has received official recognition from the World Health Organisation (WHO) for eradicating measles and was lauded for setting a great example that others can follow.To mark this achievement, the Ministry of Health was presented with a certificate of the verification of measles elimination for Brunei Darussalam by Dr Shin Young-Soo, WHO’s Regional Director for the Western Pacific during a ceremony at ministry’s Al-‘Afiah Hall, today on the 31st March 2015.

Attending the event as guest of honour was Minister of Health, Pehin Orang Kaya Johan Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Adanan bin Begawan Pehin Siraja Khatib Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Mohd Yusof.

With this certification, Brunei joins a number of countries in the region who have also eliminated measles, such as Australia, Macau China, Mongolia, the Republic of Korea, Japan and Cambodia.

In a congratulatory speech, Dr Shin Young-soo praised Brunei for its achievement, which he said, is the result of the success of its measles immunisation programme that has met its target with a high immunisation rate.The event also saw a special dialogue session take place, which covered pertinent issues of health that are of concern to the region and at a global level, while also taking into account the perspective of Brunei.

In addition to today ceremony, the Minister of Health, Pehin Orang Kaya Johan Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Adanan bin Begawan Pehin Siraja Khatib Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Mohd Yusof, recently hosted a welcoming dinner for the Director for the Western Pacific Region of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr Shin Young-soo. The dinner, which was held at Li-Gong Restaurant, The Empire Hotel & Country Club, saw the attendance of senior officials from both the Ministry of Health and WHO Western Pacific Region.

Dr Shin Young-soo and his delegation also had the opportunity to visit a number of the Ministry of Health’s facilities, such as the Pengiran Anak Puteri Hajah Muta-Wakillah Hayatul Bolkiah Health Centre, the Child Development Centre and Rumah Cahaya Sejahtera.