WISH will sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of Tokyo at the Osaka Expo 2025, marking a new chapter in collaboration. This agreement will strengthen collaboration in health, research, and innovation. Together, the two institutions will advance capacity building, drive innovation, and collaborate on evidence-informed policymaking.

Date: 18 September 2025
Time: 11:30 AM
Location: Qatar Pavilion, Osaka Expo

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Panel Speakers:

• Ms. Chika Suefiji, Advocacy Director, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)
• Dr. Rick Brennan, Former WHO EMRO Regional Emergency Director
• Dr. Akhiro Seita, Medical Director, UNWRA
• Ms. Hitomi Makabe, Head of Communications, ICRC Japan  
• Dr. Slim Slama, CEO, WISH
• Dr. Sunoor Verma, Director of Partnerships and Outreach, WISH (Panel Moderator)

This event continues WISH’s commitment to spotlighting this global challenge, following our recent panel at the 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva and the launch of our joint report with WHO.

Date: June 24, 2025
Time: 14:00-15:00 JST
Location: Qatar Pavilion, Osaka Expo

Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with global leaders and join the movement to protect health in conflict zones.

RSVP to aalmana@qf.org.qa to receive your Expo pass.

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Attacks on healthcare in conflict zones are a growing crisis, undermining international humanitarian law, disrupting essential medical services, and endangering the lives of health workers and civilians. Between 2018 and 2024, WHO’s Surveillance System for Attacks on Health Care (SSA) recorded 8,163 attacks in 22 countries, resulting in 2,948 deaths and 5,994 injuries. In 2024 and 2025 alone, 1,805 attacks have been recorded, further deepening the crisis. These attacks have immediate and long-term consequences, including the destruction of infrastructure, depletion of medical supplies, and closure of essential healthcare facilities.
Despite international legal frameworks, accountability mechanisms remain weak, and attacks persist with impunity. This urgent issue is at the heart of the World Health Assembly’s agenda, aligning closely with WHO’s 14th General Programme of Work and the shared priorities of WISH and WHO, as reflected in the joint “In the Line of Fire” report.

Event Objectives
• Strengthen Data Collection & Documentation: Highlight the critical role of WHO’s SSA and explore ways to enhance reporting, analysis, and response to attacks on healthcare.
• Sustain Global Commitment & Funding: Address the risks posed by potential defunding of WHO, emphasizing the need for sustained support for SSA and civil society documentation efforts.
• Foster Coalition-Building & Multilateral Engagement: Encourage collaboration among governments, international organizations, and humanitarian actors for a coordinated global response.
• Integrate with WHA & UN Processes: Align with WHA discussions and broader UN mechanisms, reinforcing the link between documentation, advocacy, and policy action.

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Across two days, more than 3,000 health policy makers, innovators, entrepreneurs, researchers and practitioners will convene at Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC) to look for innovative solutions to some of the world’s biggest health challenges.

This year, WISH has partnered with the World Health Organization to develop three WHO-led collaborative research projects, generating evidence-based reports for in-depth discussion at the summit. These reports will focus on topics needing the urgent attention of the global health community, underscoring a joint commitment to improve policy and practice.

Additionally, local and international partners will work with WISH to develop reports for the summit on a range of issues in areas such as health systems, ethics, physical health, and mental health. WISH 2024 will continue to emphasize the need for regional perspectives on global health and the importance of translating research into solutions with real-world impact.

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Event details link: 17th World Congress of Bioethics (cilecenter.org)

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On 25 May 2024, During the Youth PreWHA meeting. Under the theme “Health Emergencies”, WISH is hosting a session titled “Targeting of Health Systems During Armed Conflict”. This session will discuss he impact and challenges faced by healthcare systems during armed conflict and will explore solutions to safeguard healthcare in times of crisis.

Event details link: Youth Pre World Health Assembly – IFMSA

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A two-day symposium jointly organized by the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) and the Pontifical Academy for Life

This special symposium examined the role that religion plays in providing holistic care in the context of medical ethics. By focusing on the intersection of belief-based and evidence-based approaches to care, speakers and participants had the opportunity to highlight and explore the benefits of interfaith and interdisciplinary approaches to treating the body, mind, and soul.

Sessions include:

• Christian, Islamic and medical perspectives on ethics and palliative care
• Safeguarding the mental health of elderly patients receiving palliative care
• Interfaith approaches to promoting the role of spirituality in palliative care
• Perspectives on pediatric palliative care
• The mental health and wellbeing of older people: spiritual opportunities and challenges
• Maintaining the bridge of love between people with dementia and their carers
• Mental health and the elderly: the intersection of spirituality, caregiving, and medicine
• Suicide and life-threatening behavior among the elderly

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The global day of recognition is the first time the importance of UHC has been given a platform to galvanize support across the world. WISH is proud to stand alongside over 270 partner organizations from 64 countries, including World Health Organization, Oxfam and Save the Children.

UHC is the basic concept that every person, everywhere, should have access to health care without suffering financial hardship. This essential human right is a cornerstone of sustainable development and global security. Yet currently, one billion people lack access to basic health care, and a further 100 million struggle financially to access it.

In response to this challenge, WISH has established a Forum on Universal Health Coverage, chaired by Sir David Nicholson KCE CBE, former Chief Executive of the National Health Service in England, which has grown to become one of the world’s largest publicly funded health services since its launch in 1948.

Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham, Executive Chair of WISH, said: “It is unacceptable that over one billion people currently live without access to quality healthcare. This basic human right should not be dependent on where you were born or what you do for a living. To ensure real impact, it is vital that organizations across the globe work together to address this urgent health challenge. As part of WISH, our UHC Forum will look to deliver practical, evidence based methods for extending quality healthcare provision to the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people.”

WISH is in line with Qatar Foundation’s mission of launching initiatives as part of a drive towards fundamental healthcare development and reform. It remains closely aligned to the vision and mission of QF to unlock human potential and serve to underscore Qatar’s pioneering role as an emerging center for healthcare innovation.

For more information about WISH or the 2015 Summit, please visit: wish.org.qa.

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