Antalya:Azerbaijan, Brazil, and the World Health Organization (WHO) co-hosted a significant high-level roundtable focusing on the integration of health into the global climate agenda during COP31 in Antalya.

According to Azerbaijan State News Agency, this event was organized under the Baku COP Presidencies Coalition for Climate and Health, a coalition formed during Azerbaijan's COP29 presidency to maintain continuous collaboration between climate and health sectors.

The roundtable began with opening remarks from several key figures, including Mukhtar Babayev, President of COP29 and Climate Issues Representative for Azerbaijan, Alexandre Padilha, Brazilian Minister of Health, Aziz Alper Biten, Director-General for EU and Foreign Affairs at the Turkish Ministry of Health, and Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.

Speakers at the event also included Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, representing Egypt's Ministry of Health and Population, and Moza AlKetbi, Head of the Environmental and Occupational Health Section from the Ministry of Health and Prevention of the UAE.

Discussions at the roundtable addressed advancements in climate and health since COP29, highlighting initiatives such as the Belém Health Action Plan from COP30 and the WHO's Alliance for Transformative Action on Climate and Health (ATACH). Attention was also given to the Antalya Initiative on Resilience (AIR) proposed by Türkiye, which aims to bolster the climate resilience of healthcare systems.

Participants underscored the importance of enhancing health system resilience to climate change impacts, the allocation of financial resources, implementing international commitments at the national level, and promoting international collaboration and knowledge sharing.