Prof. Saeed Akhter, Chairman of the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute (PKLI) and Member of the Prime Minister’s Taskforce on Hepatitis C Elimination, held a high-level meeting with senior officials of World Health Organization (WHO) Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.

During the meeting, Prof. Saeed Akhter presented the implementation plan of the Prime Minister’s National Hepatitis C Elimination Programme in Pakistan and sought technical guidance and support for future fundraising initiatives to ensure the programme's sustainability.

WHO officials, including Dr. Fumie Lesi, Dr. Matteo Zignol, and Dr. Daniel Low-Beer, shared global best practices and various implementation models of Hepatitis C elimination. They highlighted the economic value of such initiatives, noting that every USD 1 invested yields an estimated save of USD 11, in addition to significantly reducing human suffering and healthcare burden.

The WHO representatives reaffirmed their full support for the programme through the WHO Headquarters, Regional Office, and Country Office in Pakistan. They also engaged in discussions regarding potential avenues for fundraising to support the programme’s objectives.

The meeting was also attended by Dr. Marghoob Butt, Ambassador of Pakistan to Switzerland, and Dr. Safdar Pasha, participated virtually from the WHO Country Office in Pakistan.