The United Nations World Health Organisation office in Solomon Islands has been upgraded to a WHO Representative Office.

A recent ceremony to mark the full status upgrade was attended by the WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific Dr Shin Young-soo.

Dr Shin says the office was upgraded to keep pace with evolving public health challenges and with rapid expansion in terms of health programmes and personnel in Solomon Islands.

He highlighted a recent external assessment of the WHO Office, which indicated that both the government and development partners recognize the significant contribution of the WHO and both wish to ensure that WHO maintains a strong presence and performance at country level.