The Department of Community Health Sciences (CHS) at AKU hosted a consultative workshop series to support the development of the Sindh Health Policy (2026-2035). Led by Dr Zahid Ali Memon in close collaboration with Dr Ershad Kazmi - Focal Person Health Policy Formulation from the Department of Health Sindh, and Dr Naveed Asghar and Dr Mukhtiar Bhayo from the World Health Organization (WHO), the series engaged governmental, private, civil and multi-sectoral entities to discuss policy priorities and key domains such as health security, financing, service delivery, Universal Health Coverage and multisectoral action.
The sessions built on progress made during the first provincial workshop held in August, which reviewed the Sindh Health Sector Strategy (2012-2020). Days 1-2 focused on one-on-one meetings with the Director General Health, Sindh, People’s Primary Healthcare Initiative and Sindh Healthcare Commission to understand current policy issues and barriers that hinder healthcare provision. This was a key exercise undertaken to identify policy priorities as identified by key policy and implementation stakeholders.
Day 3 opened with an introduction to the workshop’s objectives by Drs Zafar Fatmi, Ahsan Maqbool, and Shiza Khalid, followed by presentations on the current state of health security and multisectoral coordination. Working groups explored two major themes; strengthening health surveillance and emergency response systems, and improving multi-sector collaboration in areas such as environment, food safety, and social protection.
The fourth day focused on reviewing the status of health service delivery across Sindh between 2012 and 2020 with presentations by Dr. Hasan Bin Hamza and Abeer Mian, followed by consensus-building with participants in strategic domains of service delivery at the primary, secondary, tertiary, and multi-sectoral level.
Further to the collaborative approach, Mr. Naveed Asghar from WHO emphasized the importance of local engagement as: “Health policy is most effective when it is informed by those closest to the realities on the ground. This workshop demonstrates the power of partnership in shaping evidence-based, sustainable health strategies.”
With these sessions and rich stakeholder discussions complete, the team will move forward with drafting a Sindh Health Policy (2026-2035) based on the insights obtained. The aim remains to strengthen health systems, improve outcomes and equity, and align provincial efforts with the upcoming National Health and Population Policy (2025-2034) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
