WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

REGIONAL OFFICE FOR THE

EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN

R,;~,I ONAL COIL'I'rrEE FOR 'ill S ;3AS TERl,,{ ~IjIEDI l'ERRANEAN

Ninth SGssi on

3lJ13-CONlIvII'IT.2E A

ORGANISATION MONDIALE DE LA SANTf:

BUREAU R~GIONAL DE LA

MEDITERRANEE ORIENTALE

EWRC91l/lilin/3 15 September 1959

:dlastern -;"ledi terranean, R01!ional Office, Alexandria

Tuesday, 15 SOQtemb8E 1959, at 8.30 a.m.

1.

CHAIRJI,tlli, Dr. H.O. SHOlB (Unibd Arab Republic)

C ON 1'1~N 'IS

Annual Report of tho ~o~ional Diroctor to tho ninth sassion of th8 -qo~ional Committeo; statements and rJDorts by represont-ati ves of ~~;lerob3r Stat0s.

EM/RC9A/llin/3 page 2

Government RGpresen~atives

ETHIOPIA

FRANCE

IRAN

IHAQ

ITALY

JORDAN

LEBANON

LIBYA

PAKISTAN

SAUDI AMBIA

SUDAN

TUNISIA

Representative of tho Director­General

Secretary to the Sub-Committeo

Deputy Secretary to the Sub­Committeo

Mr. Seifu Zelloke Dr. F.B. Rylander

~,/.rGd,sein Colonel Faure

Dr. -:';. ~temadia.n

Dr. A. T. Di ba Dr. P. Khabir

Dr. S. Mohamed ,,1 Chalabi Dr. Farouk Partow

Dr. Goffredo Tassi j,jr. Ahmed Abdullahi ,mmed Dr. Italo Gentilini Dr. Vincenzo Angrisani

Dr. Ahmad Nabilsi

Dr. J. Anouti (Chairman of Sub­Divis ion on Prorsra:mme)

Dr. Nouri El Rammali Mr. Omar Abbas El Qadi

Brip;adior M. Sharif, Vice Chairman

Dr. Hassan Nassif, Vice Chairman

Dr. Ahmo d Zaki

Dr. Ahmed Ridha Farah

Dr. H.O. Shoib, Chairman Dr. Dia E. Chatty Dr. Naguib Ayyad Dr. Ahmed Abdallah Dr. )!los ta pha 21 SalDlllaa Dr. 1\;Iohamed S0if () 1 Din

Dr. ? Dorolle, Deputy Director-Ge:lOral

Dr • .[:1..R. raba, Rogi anal Dir,:;ctor

Dr. -,1.. ~l Haldwani, Deputy Regional Director

United Nnti8ns and Specidized Agencies

Technical Assistance Board

UNICEF

UNR1iA

Food and iigriculture Orgc.nizQtion

UNESCO

E:fo!AW9AI Min/3 page .3

Dr. Ta~hi Nas l'

Hr. H.B. Sandberg

Dr. J .S. 11i:ckenzie Pollock

Miss MonQ Doss

Mr. E. KupkE.

Representatives cnd Observers of IntcrgovernmcntclJ

Non-Governmental and Nc.tionc.l Orgo.nizations

Ir,torno.tiorw.l Statistical Educnti6n Centre, Beirut.

InternQtion"l Association for Prevention of Blihdness

Internc.tione,l Committee of Catholic Nurses

Interndional Council of Nurses

Internn tiorw.l Dental Federatioa

Internatio=l Union of Architects

InteI"D£.tionQl Unio" against the Veaerec.l Dis8Qses and Treponeme.toses

LeQgue of Red Cross Societies

World Medical Association

Egyptian Public Health Association

United States Naval Medical Resocrch Unit No.3 (NJ\MiaJ)

High Institute of Public Hc2lth

Mr. Fo.iz El Khuri

Dr. A. Ff'.rouk

• Miss I'Inrie Ejcil

Hrs. F. Hostnfo.

Dr. K. S~lnJTI.Q

Hr. H.1\. Hciko.l

Dr. Goffredo TQssi

Dr. Youssef Seddik R..,QfQt

Dr. Hostapha ~.r

Dr. Ahmed j"".mal

Dr. John TI. SO£1.1

Dr. Abdel Fateh El SheI"if

FJi'IP,.G9A/ '1in/3 page 4

1. AIJNUAL RCPOIlT OF ':erG coJ::GIOi':,H Dr;;::::Cl'O?:-1'O 1'HE ltINTHSr;3SION OF 'TIlE ,bGImAL COl'IMIT'.lr;E; STA1TIV'lENTS Alt] !i2POITrS BY :R.:SH(SSEnrrATIV:r~.s OF JYwlffiBR Sl~~T=S: (Items 8 and 9 of th" Agenda; document 3'l,hc9/.2,)

Dr. ETEl1l8IAN (Iran) copgF'.tula-ced the Chairman on his unanimous election,

lJhich he was sure Wfl.-S not Qr4Y an.Fl·ct of courtesy to the host Government~ but

an expression of personal confidence. He associated himself HHh tne remarkb

of the 0eputy Director-General on the qualities displayed by Dr. Shoib as a

delegate to the 'lJorJd Health Assembly and as a member of the aecutive Board.

The excellent report of the, Regional Director .'/aO doubly interesting,

covering both the activities of the Regional Office during the period 1958-59

and the achievements oi' Nember States iIl the Region, ,Ji -ch i .. IO assistance,

during the ten years since 'ehc RegiO'lml Organization came into existence.

He approved the emphasis laid in the report on the training of technical

personnel, as shortage of qualified s'0aff "as a problem cemmon to most countries

of the Region. He particu12,rly Helcomed the attention paid t~ the fellocJShi:p

programme, since he felt that one of the most effective Hays of using the

resources of the i1egiol18.1 Office ',Jould be -GO ~.rant more felloHE;hips to all

categories of health Horkers so a,S to accelerate 'ehe development of programmes

at t.~le national level. At the same time, foreign experts assigned to national

projects shaul':; give TJOre time to 'erainil16 their SLlcceSSOrs to ensure the

effiCient continuation of the Hork "hen they Here 'ri_ thdrmm. He G.pprecia-c,ed

the in-ceres-y sh= by the rle[;iom,l Office in the training of doctors, Emd felt

that considerD.tion should be given to nroviding 0.irect assistance to medical

faculties in the ReGion.

The importance of env.i.ron'1lenta.l sanitation both urban a.nd rural, needed

no stressing. The greatest single need Has the pr-01rision of safe drinking

Hater, Hhich unfortunately "laS also ver;! expensi VB, so that in spite of all

their efforts Governments 2.nd municipalities often had difficulty in raising

the necessary funds. He therefore hoped thc,t the recommendations in resolution

1rJHA12.48 ",auld be lllt into effect.

illl/RC9A/ Min/3 page.,

In his introductory statement at the previous meeting the Regional Qin"c-cc::::

had referred to' the evaluat.ion ai' the resul-(:'8 of :n.a-(:'iona2. programmes. :'Jork

on such an 8valu<:'.-cion had began in Iran 1.nth ·the <lSSltl\.lo,LH':C: or "tihe rleadquarttJl's

e.::pert, Dr. M-lC chiavello. Recult.s were proving encouragI .. D-e;.

He agreed on the lleed for .intenstfying reuearch in public h~2.1th. He

felt t~1at the Hark coold be entrusted to alCistinc: institution...B i.n t~1e llegio)":.,

~Thich Nere quite ~.lell qualified to carry it out if they Vft::J.'e given the nec8;:::;a~~

financial assistance and personnel.

Lack of coordinD.tion bebleen the different cQuntrj.es of the Hegion. Has ~lrh-:

of the great obstacles to the general raising of heal;:;h standards, and he

th€refore particularly welcomed the decision of Pakistan to join ot\ler GcVerTlJ)CT,(,C]

in undertaking a malaria eradic"tion progre,mme.

In conclusion, he wished to thank th8 ilegiol1b.l'Director and his staff fOJ

their help to his country during tl18 past year. He 21so wish8cL to tl12,nk

Dr. Shousro., tire previous Regional Director, for his great contribution to

laying the foundations of IranI s present health services.

Bri"adier SHARIF (Pakistan), both :oersonally and on behalf of his Govern'Tlent,

cOllgre.tulated the Chairrne.n on his election.

He 11as attending. his first HeG:ional Cornrnittee meeting, hav~.ng been

appo"Lnted -('0 llis present post of .0ir6ctor-Gcncr.:11 of Health only three lTl.onths

previously. He did not yet feel fully" in the picture", but t'laS tryil't[; to

familiarize h:iJnself as soon as possible, with 8.~.l a,!p8ctsoi his country I s health

problems. He appreciated '~he honour done to his cruntrv and h:iJnself by his

elee"Lion ac Vic,e-Chairman.

He agreed HUh th8 representative of Ir2.n about the excellerlCe of the

report ,)efore the CormniF"ee. He thanked the Regim-:c,l Dil~ector and the st2.ff

for their ready aSSistance, uhich in his short period in office he r,ad alrec'",Y

learned to appreci2te. He' loolced fOl',·12.l'd to fruitful col12.,bQ;r'ation in the

future.

EE/l.C9A/ Min/3 page'

?,-:~Jdstan \-:2'.8 faced 1iith very seVere ~1eal"0b. problems.

2rec'" ~. popul~.tion of G 7 , 000,000.

yt.~rs before, and every thins h'J.d ru:ld -ijO be built up from scratch. A seeDEd

five-year pl.:-.n, in uhich much m.phac-':is 1128 12id on meeting the countryl s h~'""!.l·GL.

·1eec.~, vIaS to be launched in April 1960, and he wOL~lci refer to some of its

i"irstly, c;re2~t stress 1.;a8 put on health educc.tion of the public. Peo;cle

tended to thi:n.k of ~1eQlth [lS something th2.t carne ~·Ji-i:,l"":'_out effort, 2.nd of illJ-18SS

du an act 0", God; they did no":; realize. '0';::/0 they must look after their bodies

they 1wuld look after arrJ machine entrusted to their charge. A gre,·:; de2.l

of effoTt mlUla be needed to 'Dring 2 bou t the neces 82.ry ch8.nge of at ti tude.

PakistanI s population wcs 85% rural. In 1960 it .ms planned to set up

tl>renty rural h,::alth centres, ten in each 1"ling of the country, not only for

preventive purposes, but 8 . .1SO -to provide general services in the di2pensaI"J,

tuberculosis control, maternal 2.nd chile, hefll"Gh, v8,.ccination and family planniw:

fields. Those centres "ould fmm the spearhead fOT the gener2.1 development of

:cural he0.1t.h services UndGT tl1e second five-ye.s.r plan.

Tr2.ini11G of s"G2.ff, including those requiTed for '~he health centres, W2.S

one of the mai4'l nc~eds, and ~1elp from the Hec:ioIl;:l Office lIQuId be particularly

VTelcome. HiE> COlm~Gry lu:d institutes ior "\:.he training of doctors, nurses 2.ncl

other cnt.egories oi healt~;. wo:clcers, but they Here too few in number;~', 2nd

inadequately staffed. 118dic2.1 literc.ture, especially periodicals, UClS ·".lso

short and he 1-'e.S gl2.d ·co see -the emphasis laid by the Regio;.lc·l Direc"cor on

supply services in that fiC'ld. cJespite its dHficulties, his country 'lOulci b8

able tCle follol·Jl.ng Y8e.r to accept forty m8dice.l st.udents from other countries

of the Region.

He was ha.ppy to se.y tc,at his Govermnent had accepted the goal of malaria

erndic£. t.i"l1. It 1-1<13 ho:pcd thEt by next I:l0nth the pre-eradicEtion survey t8[,.T:1

llould be in the c cuntI"J. An 9,11-ou.-G att2.ck 1J'a8 also to be launched on tuber-

culosis. Smallpox Has still Gi1dernic in parts of East Pakis'Gan, but the countI"J

1IlaS now producing enour:;h vacc:iJnc· for it& needs and he hoped it might not be too

I:H/aC9A/ Min/3 page 7

long before the disease 1'JCJ.S eradic.;:.ted. Regc.rding tmchorna, " team from

PakLs'cBn would be attending the semi;1i.~ to be held in Tunisia, and a survey

would then be carried out, in t.he o:qe part of T,'e3t Pakist2.n Hhere the disease

V'Jas preval ent" Attention waS also being paid to leprosy.

ill -0hc field of matem....".l ~.l1d child l1ez..lth, a 0ol1siderable effort h2.s

alrcc.dY 'been- ~ladb '..:'::''ldcr -I~hc' £,~~:-'s+ f::'v-:-:'-c".r plo..l1, and under the second it T,,!D.S

proposed tu extend services to all the rurc.l areas. Children represented more

than half the population, so the ir,lportance of paedic.trics was rightly expressed

in the l1e[;ional Director 1-5 report.

Dentill health and mental health ,Jere also receiving due 2.ttention in the

fi ve-yca:c plan.

Vital and ha"lth statistics nere unfortunately not as developed as they

needed to be for fuDy re21istic p12.nninf':, [lnd considemble stress wrold

therefore be laid on their iTI\~rovement.

As had already been mentioned, safe ",,",ter supplies, Hhich "ere essential

for envirol1llicntal sanitation, ",'ere also very expensive. Hm:ever, his Govern.mcnt

W2S doing ,.,h:tt i tcould, spending m<:'.ny millions of rupees for the rural 2S Hell

as the urban areas.

"Vlith reG2.rd to the administration of the Interna-ciol1£l.l Sanitary Regctl['tio113,

his Q'overnmcnt ;lad abolished the roCjl iroment for systematic disinsectizatiol1 oi'

aircraft, accept for those com;J'lG from yel101' fever areas.

A progr2JrlmO of research on cholero. kid been st<:'.rted in £'. la bor£'.tory in

East Pcld.Stilll. In the me2ntime it Has hoped that the programme to "hich he

had £'.lready referred for tho provision of safe l!2ter "ould help to combat t;1E

disease.

One m.:\'cter· to "hicb he felt the Region2l Office should give attention 1128

the investigc.tion of locally used medicin21 horbs. Most such herbs Here nO

dou bt nothing moro than quack remedies, but h" ,ms sure the. t l11."ny ].muld prove

Horth including in national ph2rrnacopoeias.

EMjRCgAi lUn!; p2ge b

Dr. ANCUTI (Lebanon), anor congr2tulcting the Regional Office on its

first ten yec;rs of activity, said h", would briefly touch on some of the activities

c2rried on in his country by his Government tn-til. the Regional Office's assist2nce.

A tuberculosis control project M.S been in opero.tion since February 1959.

1lith t;le 2id of mobile equipment, large numbers of Z-ray photographs had alro2dy

vaccin£.ted with BCG. Legislation had 2180 boon introduced requiring candidates

for publiC emp.loyrnont to undergo tesos for tuberculosis.

Sm21lpox could nOliJ be considered eradicuted, as there had not been a single

case since 1957. The problem l'JaS now only to prevent re-infection, so he

hoped tlmt neighbouring countries in '\heir turn would cooperate in eradicating

the disease. He dso suggested tmt i'JI-lQ might consider setting up in Beirut

a laboratory for the production of dried vaccine, in case for any renson supplies

uore not available from other regions. Sm211pax legislntion in Lebanon

provided for free compulsory v2ccim,tion over<J four ye2rs, beginning at the age

of six months, exemptions being 2ccorded only for gr2ve medical reasons.

ilis Govenunerrc IS fi';e-year progr8mme for the eradicntlon of m2.Laria was

to be completed in 1960. Resul-ts so f2r aV2ikble sho,fed that everything "'eeS

going accordinG to plan. He uould not give deteeiJ.s, but only express the ",ish

th.':.t neighbouring countries would cor,rploto thoir e:C['.dic<:'.tion of the disease

so that the full benefit of his country's efforts would be obtained.

A great problem in his ceuntry nt presCl,t 1if2.S poliomyelitis, the incidence

of lIhich, n5 1{21" shown by figu:>:es he cl-Ged, h.l Greatly increased in recent

YCL'.rs. vnccination >rc.S not genernlly compul'l"ry, but wns carried out only

\fhen cnses occurred in densely populc.ted c.re2[ • HO;JCver, if polio virus

vaccine really proved to be qUit8 safe, he Se.",· '10 objection to making vaccin[\tion

cempulsory throughout the ReGion, ns the prese].1 increc.se could be expected to

continue unless it was checked.

He wished to convey his Government i s thc.nlc to the Regionnl Office for its

assist.nnce in sotting up a centre for the devel"pme::1t of rurc..l henl th services.

[l;M/RC9A/ J1in/3 page 9

Water supplies nere plentiful in Lebanon, t:'.nd in many towns and villages

they were adequately pure, oot elseuhere the population depended on ~tural

springs, most of 1,hich had been ShOlID to be polluted. To dfl".L "With thl'lt

problem a great ded of help llOUld be required fran the Regional Office.

Dr. CHAIABI (IIT'.q) expressed his pleasure at Dr. Shoibls election to the

chair t:'.nd leis ho;?cs for a su~cc8sful meeting that "mId contrioote positively

to :t'2.isin,~ health sta,ndards to the Region. His Government I s hospi talitv' n t

the last meeting of the Regional Committee, so kindly mentioned by the Regio!'zl

Director, uaE' on:l¥ natural in view of his Government1s wish to co-operate in.

every way in the ,?Ork of the Region.

During the past ten years liliO had ;J.ssisted his country in developing all

aspects of its health services. He would refer briefly to some of the more

important projects.

The credits voted for his. Government I s malaria eradication programme had

recently been increased by one and half million dinars. In that connexion,

he endorsed the emphasis in the Regioml Director1s report on the importance

of coordination of er<ldication activities throughout the Region. He also

took the opportunity of thanking UNICZF for supplying tne DDT required for the

programme in Iraq.

Control of bilharzia,sis coule not be effectively achieved without expert

direction, oot the posts or "mo experts in his Government1s project had

unfol~unatelY been vacant for part of the present year. He hoped thD.t suitable

persons .. ould soon be sent 80 tl12.t opel"ations eould be res1lJlled. The prOblem

Has serious: available figures showed t;1at 30% of the population in .the project

area was affected, but it wa,s believed '0l18t tlle true percentage was higher.

A High Council had been set up by the Government to coordinnte all

activities in the control of communicable diseases. A training centre had

also been established for communicable dise2se control personnel, and it Has

hoped progressively to establish centres for the trClim.ng of other categories

of health workers. A neH medic2.1 school w".s to open at Mosul the folloWing

month, with ar. initial intake of 200 students.

EhJi'lMA/ Min/3 ooge 10

A credit or 400,000 Dinars had been allocated to right leprosy on the

south or the oountry; assistance in this regard wculd be welcomed.

A smallpox eradication campaign ;1ad been launched a month ago with help

from the USSR. In that connexion he endorsed the remarks of the Regiond

Director on the need for simultaneous operations t'-~oughcut the Region.

;>i!k~lly, the camtryr s' netHork of he~J.tlc centres has been extended ,md

its equipment improved.

The ob.iective of the Organization was to raise heD.Hh st2ndards everywhere,

so he felt bound to mention one particuJ.ar thre2.t to the health of the Region,

namely the intention of the French Government to explode an atomic bomb in the

Sahara region. He asked the other Goverrunents of the Region to join with him

in calling on the French Government to renounce its project.

Dr. NASSIF (Saudi Arabia) congratulated the Chairmv.n on his election and

th<:..'lked Dr. Taba and his staff ror the excellent report they had prepared.

He would cOJl1Jllent briefly on Mtivities in his own ccuntry, where the mo.in hroHh

problems were smallpox, malaria, and tuberculosis.

There were several obstacles to the effective control of smallpox, the

first being connected \lith the annual MeccD. pilgr:i.mego. Unvaccinated pilgrims

showing smo.llpax symptoms had often been encountored in the past,but tho

previ01l8 ye&l' oases L14u. O-';<.;1.:.::c.r-0d v!l shipo l8dVil.:.g ai'l:,er the pilgrimc.ge, o.lthough

all pilgrims had possessed vaccination certificates. Too t shm18d that some

of the certiricatos were not Gemine, md he hoped th2.t tho countries:rrom

which the pilgrims came ",auld take appropriate measures. A second problem

was the large number of cases arriving from Yemen, which hnd a long commcn

frontier with Saudi Arabia. He trusted thct the Yemeni Government, whose

representative was not yet present at the seSSion, lIould co-operate "nth his

in order to rid the ccrnbined itroa of thc diso2se. Thirdly, dried vaccine H2S

not giving as good results ::-.s liquid. He personally h2d vaccinated his own

Q,ughter five times Hith dried vaCCine, taking every precaution, but without

success .. Whe!l he had used liquid vaccine, the vaccin2tion had taken thE rirst

time.

EM/RC9A/ IYlin/3 p2.ge II

Regarding the measures imposed by his Government under Article 103 of

tho Internotional Sanitary Regulntions throughout the ycc.r (p2.ragraph 247 of

the Regional Directorls report), he explained th2t the flDl'l of visitors to

Saudi Arc'bla W2.S const<mt 2.n~ not confined to the pilgrimage season, and the.t

ID2.ny of those coming overland, frcrn Pakistan for ex2.mple, did not he.ve

vaccination certificates. The problem W2S agGravated by the f2tigued condition

of the visitors which rendered them particularly susceptible to infection or

sunstroke.

Plans h2.d been 12.id to launch 0'. c2IDPaign for tho ere.dicntiol1 of malari2,

2.00 it wns intended t~.t the er2.dic2tion tC2Jl1S should at the selUC time combat

bilharz iasis •

Al1Clther tuberculosis hospikl hD.d been completed during the past ye2r.

A clinic for domicil~ry care established two years ago in Rind he.d proved so

successful tlk".t it was .plc1llned to establish more in othor a!'B£.S of the country.

His Goverrmlent 1 s responsibilities in the field of health were perhaps

greater than those of any other Government in tho Region, since it must protect

the pilgrirtLs as:well as its o;m people. lifith co-opcr2.tion from neighbouring

countries it .[}Quld improve its. services in that reg2rd. For ~cmple, of 700

piiE(:nms who had died during the P2st yearl s pilgri!lla"e. 600 lw.d been old

people. The death toll cruld be greatly refuced if Governments would prevent

the old and infirm from attending tho pilgrim2Go, at least until weather

conditions bece.mo milder.

Apart from malaria and smC'llpax:. [mother import[mt problem in his country

H2.S thE'.t of drinking ;mter, Hhich 1ow.s deficient both in quantity [md in purity.

Plans Here heing discussed uith ',JI{O to t2ckle the problem, ii1cluding the

possibility of fluoridation.

Facilitios for training personnel were 2S yet very rudimeIItc.:ry in this

country. ,vi th lrillO assistance it ,,:::s plLDned to set up tr;:cining schools for

male nurses so thEt eventually there lmulct be ore 2.ttEched to e2ch hospital.

EM!RC9A;M:in13 page 12

There was no yellow fever in Saudi Arabia, but the vector mosquito was

found, and every precaution was therefore be:ing taken to prevent the :intro-

duction of the disease.

As the countries of the Region grappled with their exist:ing health

problems., they were faced with a new and unknown danger from the atomic

bomb which the French Government proposed to explode in the Sahara. He

would submit a draft r~solution call:ing on the Regional Committee to condemn

the proposed action and request:ing the Regional Director to take all

appropr~te measures.

F:inallY, he wished to relterate his gratitude to the Regional Director

and also to thank the Deputy Director-General, t,hose presence at the

meet:ings of the Regional Committee was always most helpful.

Mr. EL QADI (Libya) expressed his confidence that Dr. Shoib would prove

a most efficient Chairman.

He hoped the Regional Commlttee would join the representative of Saudi

Arabia :in condemn:ing the proposed atomic explosion in the Sahara. It

constituted a severe threat to all the countries of the Region, and particu-

larlY to thOse :in the African cont:inent.

He thanked the Regional Director for his valuable report and for all

the assistance accorded to his Government during the past year. He hoped

it would soon be possible for Dr. Taba to visit Libya in person and see its

various problems at first hand,

Lack of qualified perccmnel was a serious problem :in his country, and

he therefore endorsed the Regional Director's views on the :Unportance of

education and training. In the field of communicable diseases, Libya's

ma:in problems were trachoma and tuberculosis. Regarding the former, he

realized the difficulties facing the Regional Office in finding highlY

qualified specialists in eye diseases, and hoped they would soon be overcome.

A five-year plan for the general improvement ·of the country's health

services was to begin in 1960. His Government was counting on eXtenslve

assistance from the l~gional Office and from other organizations in this plan.

~WRC9JV'Min/3 page 13

Re~ardin~ malarla, tho preliminary results of the survey recently carried

out showed that the disease was confined to a relatively small area containing

210 of the country's population. The ~overnment would undertake an eradication

program~e early next year.

Rogardinc: mental health. his Governmont approY"dtho app01ntmen't 01 a new

full time adviser and had annreciated the recent viSit by ,IRO experts.

Finally, he wished again to emphasize the importance hE e:t'tacnea vo "fie

?roposal of tho Saudi Arabian ropresen-retive.

Dr. ZAIIT (Sudan) ccngratulated the Chairman on his election and thanked

the Re~ional Director for hlS ro?ort, which showed that the aotivities of tho

Regional Office were being well run. He would ask for clarification on a few

points of detail.

On page 2 of the Introduction it was stated that at tho end of tho period

under reviow 64 projeots wore in operation, 95 were being ~lanned and 18 had

been completed. He hoped that it would bo possiblc to accelerat.0 activitios

So that the proportion of projects in operation and completed could be incraas0d.

Ho agreed with tho Regional Director about tho imp~rtance of education and

training activities. In that connexion. he noted that the proportion ~f the

budgot to bo devotod to followshius in 1960 and 1961 was loss than in 1959. He

would hav~ preferred to soe a stoady incroase in tho relative amounts allottod to

fellowshi ps •

There were not sufficient modicamonts and vaccinGs in his country for com-

batting communicable diseasos thore. He hoped that a sum would be lalG Gown In

1:m0 ' S bud~et for tho Ro~ion for the provision of medica.~onts and vaccines for

that purpose. He was ~lad that tho Lobanese roprosontativ6 had raisod tho

question of poliomyelitis. Malaria eradication operations would probably start

in the Sudan very soon.

The Regional Office should give high priority to community health problQms,

and in partioular to that of prOViding adoquato drinking water sUDplies. In

thG Sudan many mothors and ohildron died bocause of fly-borne aiseasGs. He

fully a~rGod with sub-paragraph 93 (b) of tho report. Mora health eduoation of

~dults and health demonstration cen'tros W8~e noeded in tho Sudan,

.• :.JJ:~/;;.""J~i .. /'" .... J.'l.Lni) pnge 14

He hoped the Regionul Director would bear in mind the undesirubility of

changing experts too frequently. The reports of ala experts sent to the

Sudan did not rench the nuthorities of his country soon enough.

,fuen malO.ng budgetary crr~m8emcrrts for the future twrk of the Regional

Office the importance of long-term projects such 28 five-yenr plans should be

Major health projects in his country were often adversely affected by

coonges made in Technicul Assistance ~"rrangements by "lIO. Such chcnges were

mnde too often.

D;r. TASSI (Ituly) sdd the.t he dso wus very grnteful to the Reg<.onal

Director for the interesting report under discuss:ion.

He would like to enphasize his sto"tement tm"t the carrying out of projects

1,raS often udversely affected by luck of 2"deque.te personnel; that t,ras ~. mElt·Ger

"Ihich should be given c2.reful considerr,tion. He wus very grateful to H}IO

for the help it wus giving with ·the establishment in Somalia of a school for

"uxilinry he"l th personneL

Dr. FARAH (Tunisiu) suid h"e .. ns very "rrteful to the Regionul Director

for the report under discussion, which consisted of 2" very clenr description

of the Region1s health problel1Eand of the pr"iseworth.v efforts being m£\de by

the RegiomlOffice to de2"l with them.

He w':'shed to by stress on the implJrkncc of tr2.in:ing publiC health workers,

und in purticular doctors. Although there "IUS a grep"t need for specialized

tr~.ining, such trnining was not Cllu2,Ys successful bcc2use, in many ceses, tilOSC

who were given it did not possess the necessQry ksic knovlledge of public

hGulth .wrk. For that reusen tho provision by WHO of a course of h'\sic

instruction on public hec"lth Hark for the Rogion might be very useful.

The Sub-Committee should tej{c steps to ensure that t,'1e Uni ted Nutions

Genercl Assembly wus informed t;,2t it 'JaS strongly opposed to nucleo.r bomb

tests being carried out in the Sah"ra.

Dr. NABTISI (Rashernite Kingdoln of Jordan) said th2.t he also >reS verv

grateful to the Regionnl Director for the comprehensive report under discussion,

in l~hich the Regional Director had clear4' explained the health problcllllS of

the region.

Considerab10 progress hud recentl.v been mt!.d£ in his countrv in work

rogarding vi-tal uncl ,health c-cc:.tistic.s. 'rhct was very largely due to help

recei ved from the WHO expert on the subject who was stationed in Beirut.

The Minister of Hoolth of his ccuntry had established a cO!l1l11J.ttee to discuss

vital and health statistics work. He hoped "CMt the expert wculd in the near

future pay a longer VJ.SJ.t to A1nman than the one month Is Visit lffiich he hnd mude

already, one month not bcinr sufficien"C.

It was highly regrettable thi'.t smallpox was'uot yet uompletely eradicatcrl

throughout the world~ althrugh mankind had for long been in possession of the

means 01' aclUev;jng that "tim. The existence of sllk\llpox in one country ,laS a

great danger fa)" neighbooring ccuntries from wl)ich it had been eradicat.ed.

His Goverrunont had offered ol1e million doses ,f liquid smnllpox vnccine to

the Regional Office and two million doses of it +,0 HaO Hocidquarters. It hoped

to proVide them with the same amounts -:£ such vaccine eMh year in the future

Dr. NASSIF (SAudi Arubia) proposed the adoption of the following draft

resoJlltion:

"T~ Sub-Committee A.

DAsi.ring tc protect the population of the Region and tho ad.jacent

area!' from atomic bomb and radiation hazurds tfmch threatc.'Il public nC".lth,

1. DISAPPROVES +,h" explosion of tho atomic bomb by li'rellee in the

Algerian Desert and asks t~.t this J.IlU\lJMn c.ction be abandoned;

2. REQUESTS tho Regionul Director to noti1'J this Resolution to the

Orgunization Membar Skies and to all International Organization" and

Bodies by all p""sible means."

Zh/RC9A;1'Iin!3 page 16

Dr.E1 SAMMAA (United Arrb Republic) said tkt his Govermnent .,es grateful

to tho R.egi'Onal Director and WHO as a whole for the w:l rk they were doing.

The Ministry of Health greatly appreciated the report under discussion, which

it hL'.d studied very cO'refu1Jy. It WOlld do 1'.11 in its powor to help the

Regiollc~l OffiCe carry out its functions.

'It ~m's highly desirable thc.t tho funds availeble to the Regional Office

for health edUcation md trr.ining should be incree.sed. In particular, the

need for prOViding more nurses for doing prt.ctice.1work should be borne in mind.

He hopod th:\t villO would help institutions in .,hich health education <'.nd trc.ining

were given by providing them .nth doeumontntion and helping them to drnw up

curricula for health edUclltion c.nd training, since the arrcmgement of such

curricula was most importnnt. He also hoped that 1JHO would provide assistance

for evaluating the results of hee.1th work in ccuntries of the Region, since

such eva1uetion wes most desireb1e. Such evaluation could be successful only

if there were aaequete cooperntion. HHO should provide more experts than it

.ms doing nt present for helping with the tmining of hGalth workers. It was

necessary "';,hnt the latter should receiv(; instruction in their own language.

Fe11m,ships should be grrnted by \Jl;!O primarily with a view to aiding the

countries of which tho reCipients were nationAls. Personal interviews were

desirnble for the purpose of l1U'.kind the best possible selection of candidates

for vJHO fellm;-ships, and t:lere should be e.dequate reports on the work dono by

those selected dUr1ngtheir fellollShips.

He W.:'.S very grateful to the Regiond Office end elso to UNICEF for the

very valuable help they were giving to the hed th euthorities in both parts of

his country with a view to the eradication 9f mnlerin. The planning . of malarie

eradication operations there wc.s neerly completed, ~nd it was EllCpected thnt the

stege of actual operations would stc.rt very soon. qe hoped th~t the R.egional

Director would have more funds aveileble for malaria eredicetion work than

those for which provision had been made.

El'1;1'l.C9A,hlin/3 page 17

The authorities of his country .vere carefulJ,y studying wlmt ,mre the best

methods of fighting bilharziasis and other endemic disGlses.

WlO should grc.nt felloHships to persons living in the Region for studying

radiation haznrds~ He. wished to join in the protest against the projected

nuclec.r bomb tests by the French c.uthorities in the Sahara.

Mr. ZELIEKE (Ethiopia) said tht'.t the health Quthorities of Ethiopi2 had

studied the report carefully 2nd lmd found it most enlightening .. He hoped

tho.t the c.nnual reports which the Heg~onal Director "lOuld. make in the future

Hould be equally enlightening,

M6decin-Colonel FAURE (Fr1J1lce) SQid th,-,t he c.lso mshan to congratY.late

the Hegion2.1 Director on the report, uhic:~ Wc.s a very lucid (lne.

He had been astonished to henr severb:l comnients on nuclear tests which

Here entj.rely a matter of conjecture. No nucloar tost had ':leon made by the;

French "uthorities in the S"ho.rn, ffild no ono could say "ith certc.intY.w-hether

they "lOuld mQke arw such test tCJere.

ThG REGIONAL DIPcECTOH said theLt first hG wished to c.cknmllodge the 1:lOrds

of e;Jpreciation reg2rding the 1,ork dono by himself "nd his staff.

The representntive of Iren ho.d spoken of tho importance of WHO helping

to provide f"cilitics for the study of public hcdth '.nd preventive nlOdicino

in universities of the Region, Provision for lmO providing such holp heLd boon

made in the proposed Progmrnme "nd Budget Estimntes for tho Region for 1961

The e.ssisknce by the TICf,ioDe.l Offi"" in this field 1ms in f1Cct

increasinc. He was "lad th2.t the represcntntive of Ire.n, o.nd other

representatives "lSD, h"d stresse<i the import£.nce of providing o.dequc.te supplies

of wv.ter; the Regional Office wo.s prepc.red to provide nt'.tional hcnlth c.uthoritiGs

with more ~_ssist[ll1cG in that connexion. He 1-lould like to know the plc.ns of

governments of the Region regc.rding we.ter supplies. In c onnexion with the

evaluntion of the totD.l nationcl hwlth progr21lll11es, he 1'1e.s looking forward to

receiving the Iranian authorities I report on the eve.luntion project presently

in operation, which he believed would be vory useful to the Regional Office.

Jil/llC9A/ Hin/3 Pc'lge18

He 'ms ver<J interested in the inform£.tion given by the represonk,tive of

P,,-kistan, especially that reg,,-rding P,,-kistan's second five-yo,,-r plan and the

trflininc; of hv:clth personnel, He ,-[auld be ,gJo.d to discuss that, and the

Region,,-l Office 1wuld re,,-dily give 2~11. -c.he he!,p it could for carrying out the

project. He Wc.B plecsed thcct tho p:c:o.stan c.uthori-c.ies were planning to s~0c.rt

mc.laric. erc.dicc,ti'On ope:L~o.tionG" T;;:~ ... C.t the Pc..kisto.ni represent2. ti ve }-~~cl s:2id

regarding Vital and health st,,-tistics Wt.s very importnnt.

He vlaS particularly interested in the three subjects stressed by the

rcpresentativeof the Lebanon in describing public henlth nctivities in his

country, namely tuberculosis, public he,,-lth ll'bor:ctories and smallpox; the

Ile[!;ional Office would reo.dily assist the LcbanGse l'uthorities vlith activities

concerned with those three subjects, l'nd particularly with vnccine production.

':Jith reference to the Lebanese representative! s stntement to the effect that

the number of cases of poliomyelitis in the Lebanon 1ms incre<'.sing, he thought

he should report that inCidence of poliomyelitis 1J<'.S incrensinc in other

countries of the ReLion also, nnd that in p:crticular it hc.,d incrcl'sed in orel's

where pure water supplies hc'ld recently been provided for the first time.

Lengthy questionnaires regarding the dise,,-se hC'.d been sent out from the Re[;iono.l

Office to the c01ltltries of the Rec;ion o.nd dnto. were beine received. The

Regional Office 1fould g12dly 1-1clp c2r.cy out the rurGl h8Qlt.h progrt'.mme mentioned

by the Leb,,-nese representc,tive, o.nd he 'lOped th,,-t the nrr"-ngements for the

provision of such help l-puld be finalized during the current session,

The ropresentntive of Ir,,-q heed been ri[;ht to stress the need for strengtheninG

measures to combat bilharzi,,-sis emd malnria. The RegionC'l Office wns tr<Jinc:

tc help the Iraqi nuthorities with such r'loasures. He hoped tllE'. t arrangements

regarding the special project for tro.ining technicC'l personnel to serve in

Ir~,q would be completed shortly. He "elcomed the progress being lD£\de in Irnq

vJit.h mnluric. eradication.

Et-1/RC9AjM1nj, pege 19

He naa 'taKen cerelUl note 01· tho InfOI'lll.'ltlon regarding health problems in

Sauo"i Arabia given by the represenktive of that countr.v. par't~cu.Ll:\rlY the

information relating to smallp,ox, which he thought could best be discussed when

the Sub-Committee was discussing the progrmmne for 1961. The Regional Office

would readily give w~tever assistl:\nc€ possible for the provision of safe

He hoped that arrangements would be

completed shortly for the provision by 1JHO of assistance for training of all

categories of sub-professional he~th personnel; that might per~ps be dono

by expanding existing project.

He had been very interested in the sktoment ID£'.de by the representf'.tive of

He Wf'.S glad that the Libygri authorities 1mlcomed the Visits they ~d

received frQll representatives of the Region~ Office. He tried to arrf'.nge

such Visits wheneverthe:v were necessar:'T.

With'reference to the Sudanese represen"tative1s rom.2rks on puge 2, he

woul.d. explain that "lBI' W/J.S the figure for the number of projects completed in

the one Year covered by the report" "hereas the :figure fpr projeots et the

planning stage were those includ"d also in tho 1961 budget. He included in

his progr£JlUi1e proposals all the necosso.ry proj<JCts proposed by gove·nmrents of

the J:tegion in so i'ar as tho.t W!}S possible. He .vas gl!}d th!}t t.he representntive

of the Sudnn agreed Wit11 his Views ref{ardirm the noed fer the training of health

personnel. It gave 1:l.im pleasure to b~ able to report thnt some of t.ne Droblems

,Ii th which the RegiOnnl Offioo hnd been faced where training of Regivi1c.l

c!}ndidates at the Higher Institute of Nursing in Alex!}ndri" was concerned m.d

been ironed out ir discussions with the rector of Alexandria University.

Two levels of troinlng at ASFEC enabled more students to participnte ir. the

courses. I'lith regard to the Sudanese representative1s commonts on the fnc

t~t according to figuro III the prcpertion of tho Rcgion,u Office's tot!}l

expenditure on fellowships would be gre!}ter in 1959 that. in 1960 or 1961, he

wculd explain that actual expenditure by the Regioml Oi'fice en fellowships

dunng 1959 wculd be hit;.'"lCI than the fieure &.,proved by the Sub-Gommittee at

a prev:LOUS session, becnuse. Sl'.VJ.nf(S "ccrull~h tQwaras the ena .vf Sc'1ch yoor were

EI·VRC9A/Min,/5 page 20

used to provide fellowships. Actual expenditure by the Regional Office on

fellowships during 1960 and 1961 would for that reason urobably also be hie;her

than ~he figures auproverl by the Sub-Committee. He would try to ensure that

the number of fellowships granted would be as great as possible. ·'VHO's rules

re"ardin!1; 1,'.e llow.shi ps were being tightened. '11R0 fellowships were being granted

for study in fields most ur~ently needed, and those to whom such fellowships

were awarded should he the most suitable persons. The Re:,ional Office would

endeavour to provide the Sudanese authorities with supplies for the control of

communicable diseases; but it should be remembered that WHO relied to a large

extent on UNICEF to provide such supplies. He intended to submit a roport

on poliomyeli tis in the Region the following year. 'I'/HO did not change the

experts which it sent to member countries except for compelling personal or

administrative reasons; in all cases in which they were changed the autho-

rities of the country concerned were consulted. Delays in providing experts

were unfortunate but unavoidable.

The Italian representative had drawn attention to the need for training

health personnel. The report showec'. tint the Re?,ional Office's orogramme

included plans for helping to traln such personnel in Somalia.

He had taken careful note of what the reprosentative of Tunisia had said,

and in particular of his reference to the need to train doctors to man public;

health services.

He had noted the suggestion made by the representative of the Hashemite

Kingdom of the Jordan that the l~RO expert on vital and health statistics should

visit his country again for a ,1ongBr period than before. He wished to thank

that representative for the very welcome offer of smallpox vaccine.

He appreciated the assurance given by thA representative of the Dni ted Arab

Republio that the authorities of that country would continue to do all in their

power to help tho Rogional Offico carry out its functi~ns. As he had s~id at

the opening meeting of tho session tho rolo.tions betweon thos0 authorities and

the B.egiono.l Office W0re porfect. Tho ROl!,ion:ll Office WOl,ld f';ladly help natiar&

EMIRC9A;Min!3 page 21

nuthorities arrange curricula for the trdning of hec.lth personnel, "hich he

ugreed W2S a most important matter. He bad been very interested in bis remarks

concerninc; tIle importnnce oJ: eVQlue.tion of the results of hec.lth work, because

it was indeed necessary to evaluiete mtioml health c.ctivities, espocially as

rc.pid developmeIlts were taking place c.t present in heo.lth work. The Regioml

Office w'ould c;ladly holp In th such evaluc.tion. 11i th reference to his remc.rks

regarding fellowsllips, he thought he should skte thct personal interviews of

cnndicktes for feUmmhips by members of the Regionc.l Offtce were arranged

whenever practical. Usually reports 1[ere submitted both by the recipients

of the fellowships themselves and by the o.u"thon:tics of the country to \,hich

they were sent; those reports were forw'.rded to the ieuthorities of their

home countries whenever necessc.rv.

He had taken c~reful note of ,,]o';:.t the representatives of Ethiopi~ and

France had said.

After the representative of Saudi Are.blie hnd pressed i"or discussion of

the draft resolution 11hich he had proposed, the Regiol1F.l ;:)irector said that

he had not referred to this mietter in his reply since he believed that it

should properly be discussed under item 15 (e) of the AgenOO Imich decelt wit:,

Radiation =d Public He2.lth.

Dr. ZAKI (Sud.':Il1) felt tlrt there wns insl\fftcient emph:'.sis in the report

on envirOl1Illent,nl sanitation and corrurunity hG.:.'"llth problems. It was of

p,.,rticulnr interest to his Government that thoro should be nn active progr"mrne

of plmming for sanitntion in I'llr"l are"s, l"lith spociill reference to the

development 0 f e. cheap end prncticnl ID.trinc.

The REGIONAL DIRECTOR snid thilt the plilns for a I'll~"l health progr2.mme

"Jere being developed with the Government of SuOOn. Tho question of the

developmen'i:, of n practicul Intrine for I'llr"l snnitiltion -would be considered

in relntion to this project, but there WilS of course at present no single

type of latrine which uas universo.lly suitilblo for use in rural arenS.

EM;RC9Afttin!3 page 22

Dr. NASSIF ~Saudi Arabia) sdd that the do.nger of ntomic radintion was

a matter which o.ffe~ted the Region as a whole and should be discussed by the

Sub-Committee rather than by the Sub-Division of Programme.

Support for this view was expressed by the representatives of Iraq and of

Libya but it waS agreed th:\t further discussion on this q)lestion be postponed

to permit, consio<ll."ation of the draft resolution on the Annual Repor" of the

Regional Director.

The 3HAIRMAN read the follotrlnG drc.ft resolution:

"ThE Sub-Comm~ttee,

'f!cv1ng considered the report of the Regiork".l Diroc'tor coveri!1.g the

twelve mon'tb period 1 July 1958 to 30 ·June 1959,

1. EXPRESSES sntisfaction with the work accomplished during the period

2. NOTES with apprecia't1on the lines along which the programme is

developin[:" particlllarly the increasing emphasis being placed on educo.tion

andtrainillf.(, the control anderadiMtion of cCl1lllllnicable diseases and the

:promotlonof maternal £,nd child hrolth in all ite 1lSPocts;

:3. NOTES with approval the extension of inter-country and inter-regional

undertakinge which are essential to the coordin~tiOn of activities;

4. URGES GOVernments tv ensure con'tinuine 8Veluution of tn~ir hea.Lth

activities., as an integrel pert of their total health programmes;

5. COMMENDS the Rer60nal Director for his COIllprehensive and far-sighted

report;

6. REQUESTS the Regional Director to intensify his efforts 'in nIl the

fields outlined'

7. ADOPTS tho report as presented.IT

Dr. ZAKI (Sudan) proposed the runendment 01' pnregrepn 2 by the insertion

of the l~OrdS Itenvironmentel health ana •••••• ,II after thE words ITprOlllotion of','

in the lasi line. It was so agreed.

EMjRe 9A/Min/3 pC\ge 2;

Decision:' The Sub-COOunitteoC\dopted tho resolution on the !.a'lUnl

Roport of the Regionrl Director, D.S "-ll1Bnded.

Anm'lering " question on the procedurr.l (J.spects of the propos"l for immodicto

discussion oftiJc druft resolutiol'l submitted by the Represenktive of So.udi

A rc:bin , tl,e DEFq'l'Y DIllECTOR GENIT(;\L snid th"t it wculd require the introduction

of f\. D6ieJ -J . ."Gem on ti18 i:"g8HlLa. ;t"ic;5 ;; and 10 of the, Rulosof Procodure did nO'0

provide for tho nddition of ne,1 items to the Agendc'-; ,,-fter its "doption, "-nd

Rule 50 preCluded the Sub-Cor;mlittee from "-.mendinG or suspendinG Rule 9. Tl::us,

no chonGe could be m"de to thE A[;cOOr. after its ndopti0l1 "nd " proposo,l could

be discussod only under "n ex:ist:ine; :item of the Ae;enda. It did not seem

o.ppropriate to discuss " dr"ft resolution denline; with future eventunli ties in

connexion With the report of the \cegion1'.l Direct"r which covered "- specified

period of p,,-st time. It ,;ould oonsequently seem, o.s "lro,.dy st"-.ted by the

Regiolli'.l Director, thc~t, from n procodurc.l point of vieli, the proper pkce for

the discussion of the rru::tter ro.ised by tho llo:,0l'esento.tiv8 of Snudi Ar-:cbi-:c ",~.s

under ita1 15 (e) of the ligend", Rcxlic,tion -:cnd PubliC Heo.lth.

Tho CHAIPJ'u\N, -:cfter havins consulted the Sub-Committee, ruled tkt the

dr"ft resolution, since it nrose out of tho" ""cement =de by c. representntive

of n Member St,:,tc, shoold be dcbnted under item 9 of the Agen<b, St,:,ter,1en-cs

by Eepresoi1tntives of Hembers Sktes, 1Jhich 1i1-:CS cmdor discussion concurrontly

With item 8, Report of the; Ilesiono.l Director.

The CHAIRMAN then re"d tho text of the drnft resolution submitted by trw

represent-:ctive of Snudi Arnbi2:

"The Sub-Committee A,

Desirine t oprot,-,ct tloe populntion of the RC[;ion "00 the "djacent

areas from c.wmie bomb "nei ro,di-:ction h"zC'.rds "hich threo.ten public

hC2.1th,

1. DISAPPROVES the explosion of tho o.tomio bomb by Franco in the

,Hgerien Desert "nd C'.sks thD.t this inhm1J'-l1 c.ction be dXll1donodj

EM/?..G9A ;\:!in/3 pD.c;e 24

2. RE;U1J'I'S the Region:'.l ;)irector to notify this Resolution to the

Orgnniz2.tion Memb8r St2.tes and to 2.11 Intern~.ti0l12.1 Orgnniz[\tions end

Bodies by nll possible mews,"

Dr. PARTOVJ (Irnq) propos8d tkt in li-ne 1 of peregr[\ph 1 the word

lldisnpproves tl be deleted 2.nd repla.ced by ttprotests c.sninst".

Dr. ANCU'I'I (Lebanon) proposed thE'.t the first pe.rt of p[\r<::gmph 1 should

re<::d "protests ag[\inst t;,e intention of Fr~.nce to explode en ['.tomic bomb in the

i~lGeriC'.n Desert •.••. If

Medecin Cqlonel FAUIill (Fre.nce) reiter<::ted his sktemont th.".t no domic

bomb kd been exploded by Frmce ;;.nd tLD.t the intentions of the French Governmen·

in tbis me.tter were not kn<JI.m: speculdion in th8 press should not ·be 2ssumed

to carry the weight of M officie.l pronouncement.

Dr. SAMMIL:. (United Ar~.b RelJUblic) pro-posed tl1c.t pnrrgmph 1 be 2lllended to

rec.d "protests against Dlny attempt by Fr,".nce to explode an atomic bomb in the

Algeriw Desert .... II

Dr. NASSIF ,Saudi flr::cbia) e.ccepted the amendment proposed by the

represenk.tives of Iraq <::nd the United Ar['.b Repl:.blic.

Brigredier SHARIF (PrekistrenL proposed tlT.t p<::r::\gre.ph 1 bo ::\mended so 2.S to

convey ~ condenJD.<:1.tion of c.tomic tests <:'.n::Twherc in the Recion.

Dr. ETEt1ADIAN (Iran) supported tho vimr of the previous spooker but

stressed thnt the pnrnECmph should be so worded as to condemn atomic bomb tests

anyvrhere nnd in particular in =y o.roces nmr tho ReECion rend proposed the

follo1·ring text for parD. graph 1: "Hopes tIrt the goverruneniB of the world would

refrnin from undertolcing further atomic tests and in particulor thot no ntomic

explosion "ould toke place in the neighbourhood of ,~ny country of the Region" •

Dr. ZAKI (Sudan) proposed tlod the o.mendment to prer£\grnph 1, v.cceptod by

the representative of So.udi Arcebin, be further nmended by the insertion of the

Hords "or any other country" after !tby Fro.nce".

EMjRC9ALM1n/3 pc[Se 25

Dr. NASSIF (So.udi l!.rflbiD) could not cccept the re-drcfting of Pflragrc"ph 1

proposed by the representctive 8f Ircn, 'Jut o.ccepted the additiono.l alrlendmcn"i,

proposcd by the represcntctive "f Sudrcn. He also o.E;recd to the inclusion iJ:

the taxt of parq;rQph 1 of the words 11 or other neic;hoourinG cl'eo"s of the Region"

Qfter the words "AlGerian Desert".

The CHATI'Jfll,N skted th::ct thc Sub-Col11mi ttee hQd n01) before it c" joint

proposo.l submitted by the represent"tives of pQJd.skcn flnd Im;l, which I'eQd:

"Condemns o.ny o.ttcnpt by Qny power to explode "tomic bombs in the neiGhbourhood

of the countries 01' t11is Heciontf • This amendment shoulc' be put to the vote

first.

The DERJTY DIl1ECTOR GEHZPwlL said thd before the Sub-Committee po.ssed to

the vote his duty was to reco"ll tl"K'-t the procro.mme of o.ctivi ties of the

Orc;anizQtion in the field of ro.di~tion. o.s o.dopted by the He"l th Assembly," 1<o.s

limited to the.: peo.ceful uses of o.tomic energy o.nd thd the Assembly ho"dc,lwcys

refrained from deo.line with oxry problems concerned "i th non-peo.ceful uses of

nucleo.r fission or fusion. It Ho.S true t;11l t in one of the Q onsidero. to. of

Resolution ImA 11.50, mention "2S mc"de of the" fQll-out" (fran 2tomic tests)

but" only as 0. component of the ro.dio.tion b<::ckCround :md as a matter ,micj:l "o.s

under study in -vne Scientific Committee of the United Nntions on the effects of

o.tC!1lic rndidion (UNSC::J~R). In referring to this study by UNSCElill and to

the report from the letter to the Genernl Assembly of the United N~tions., the

He~"lth Assembly hnd implicitly but cle2rly 2clmowledceG the competence o·f the

United N£ctions to de"l ,nth problems of rac1io"tion other tho.n those involved L1

its peaceful uses. He thOUGht tho"t the Sub-Committee should be reminded of

this position of the Hcalth Assembly.

The CRAD1l1"JI put to the vote the nJnendrnent to p£,r£cEr2ph 1 of the d r<::ft

resolution 2S proposod by tho represent2ti voe of Iro.n 2nd P~"kistnn.

Decision: The umendrnont wo,S rejected B votes to 5 ,,"nd no o.bstentions.

The CHA1RM:N thon put t o the vote par"t?grc,ph 1 of the o d g b c 3 . proposal 2s

modified by m r l a z s delegates with t& agreement of tho rcpreaentative of

Decision: The paragraph as rnod-ibed w<?,s adopted b7J 9 votes t o L wLCb

The CWII&AN sjid t h a t he wmld now put t o tho vote the resolution as n

Dr. Z A K I (Sudan) proposed th,-..t tlze word "threaten" i n the preamble be

replaced by the word ~en&ngerl t .

The DEFUTY DIELECTOR-CENEwL refer r ing t o pnragxaph 2 of tho proposed

resolution poirrtod mf %kt t he Regiond DDFector had no power t o ccrmuniccto

with Member States outside t h e Region; this was a finctton of the Director- ' . " . -

General. Moreovar, he wanted t o r e c ~ l l that the functions o f the Regional

Committees were definod by a r t i c l e 50 of the C3nstitutiot1, wwch he re2.d t o

%he SubGamLttee. He felt tht the proposed resolution dtd not fall within

l i tkexa . (a) o f this a h i c l e , since the point under discuaaion cmld not be

considered as o policy matters o f exclusively region&. c h n o t e r

Tho aot ion proposed, a b j e c t t o the rrcsemc,tion he had already md6, wmld

T211 withfn l i t t e r n (e); "to tender advice thrmzh the Dircc to~Gener r t l , to

t he Orgmlzr?tim, on in t emr t t l ona l health which have wider than ,

r eg iona l ~ i ~ n i f i c i a n c o ~ ~ , The present act ion should therefore be consLdesed as

an advice from the Sub-conunittee t o the OrganisatLon, t o be %rr?,nsmitt;ted .I;hxou;~h

The REGIONAL DIRIXTOR proposed th,,?t prz.gxaph 2 be mended t o rend:

the Member Stetas . , of the Or~a.*zation and of 1 n t e m . t l o n n l OrganizatFons and

Agencies thrnrch appropriate chnnelslt . Dr. NASSIF ((Saudi Ambia) agroed w i t h -t;hc proposed amendimmts.

The CHAIRNAN re~d the followinG text, ~.s 1'.l1lended:

"The Su b-C ommi ttee ,

EI1/RC9A,M.in/3 IX'ge 27

DesirinG to protect the pelpul~ti:m elf the ReGion nnd the Qdj~cent

areas frcm t.;',e dnngers to public heo.lth of the ~tcmic bomb cnd rndi~ti'lYl,

1. pmT"ESTS agQ:il1st Qny nttempt by Frc.nce or nny other country to

explode atomic banbs in the Algerinn Desert or nny other countries

neighbours to the Resion and asks thQt this inhullk."Ul nction be nbandcmed;

2. REqUESTS the Eeciond Director to bring this resolution to the

attention of the Member Sto.tes of the Org~nization m1d to lucerno.tional

Organizations and ],gcncies thrOlgh nppropriate ch.:mnel&."

nnd then put the draft resolution to the vote.

Decision: The resolution w~s adepted by 9 votes to 0, .lith 4 nbstenti:ms.

The meetin~ rose Qt 1:00 ~