Monsoon preparedness in Myanmar

Myanmar is prone to various natural hazards. Historical data show that there have been natural disasters every few years. The humanitarian community in Myanmar, represented by the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT), developed and regularly updates the inter-agency Emergency Response Preparedness (ERP) Plan to support the Government of the Union of Myanmar in preparing for, and responding to, hazards that may affect the country.

For the coming monsoon season, WHO already supported interagency emergency health kits (IEHK) to Sittwe, Rathedaung, Buthidaung and Maungdaw township health departments in Rakhine State to ensure timely health response during emergencies in monsoon. Furthermore, WHO will preposition IEHK in Kachin state to support the emergency response in monsoon. WHO is providing technical assistance to the Ministry of Health and Sports for disease surveillance and early warning, alert and response system to prevent avoidable deaths from disease outbreaks.

July to September is the usual influenza season in Myanmar coinciding with the monsoon. Learning from H1N1 event in 2017, preparedness for coming influenza season is critical to be able to prevent, detect and timely respond. WHO is supporting the MoHS in strengthening clinical management, influenza surveillance and lab detection system. A preparedness meeting for coming influenza season was held on 24 February 2018 at Department of Medical Research in Yangon. In this context, community participation to adopt hygiene practice, especially hand washing, and following the advice by health authorities, are important to prevent and control influenza. WHO will continue to provide emergency health assistance in collaboration with health partners and the national health authorities.