WHO collaborating centres in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: an agenda for action and improvement (Editorial)

The World Health Organization (WHO) is the key United Nations specialized agency dedicated to promoting population health and health outcomes. In order for the Organization to achieve its strategic objectives, WHO designates selected institutions as collaborating centres to assit with carrying out WHO core activities. The Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) currently hosts 45 collaborating centres (as of December 2018), which is only 5% of the 832 WHO collaborating centres located worldwide, and yet EMR countries host about 10% of the global population. The reason for this discrepency could be a reflection of the limited public resources allocated to health research in the Region. However, it may also highlight the fact that resources and opportunities for establishing effective collaborating centres in the EMR still remain untapped.