English 
On the occasion of World Health Day, and under the auspices of Dr. Abdelaziz Konsowa, President of Alexandria University, the Higher Institute of Public Health organized a symposium this morning titled "Healthy Beginnings for a Promising Future." The symposium was attended by the World Health Organization, the Ministry of Health and Population, the Egyptian Medical Syndicate, the American University in Cairo, the African Center for Women's Health Services, Save the Children, and the Middle East Community Health Network.
In her speech during the celebration, Dr. Heba El-Kady, Dean of the Higher Institute of Public Health, emphasized the institute's commitment to achieving high-quality healthcare through capacity building, training, scientific research, and support in addressing the challenges facing mothers and newborns in general, and in rural areas in particular. She emphasized the need for concerted efforts by the government, the private sector, academic institutions, and civil society to provide the best health services in the field of motherhood and childhood.
Dr. Abla El-Alfy, Deputy Minister of Health and Population for Population Affairs, emphasized the importance of the symposium in highlighting the need for sustainable attention to motherhood and childhood, particularly during early childhood, as these are the most critical periods in raising healthy future children. She emphasized the efforts of the Ministry of Health and Population, through the presidential initiative "A New Beginning for Human Development," to address the lack of health awareness among mothers, the increasing number of cesarean sections, and the fight against stunting. She highlighted the need to provide primary health care, counseling, guidance, and awareness of the benefits of natural childbirth, the risks of cesarean sections, and proper nutrition for new mothers.
Dr. Nema Abed explained the role of the World Health Organization in cooperating with the Egyptian government in the fields of motherhood and childhood to provide training, spread health awareness, improve performance, and link the public and private sectors to implement sound health policies.
Dr. Sungsoo Cheon, Professor at the American University in Cairo, highlighted the importance of studying the impact of climate change on motherhood and childhood and working to apply scientific research to provide integrated, quality health services for mothers and children.
Dr. Abdel Moneim Fawzy, Head of the Alexandria Doctors Syndicate, and Dr. Mohamed Farid Hamdy, Secretary-General of the Syndicate, expressed the Doctors Syndicate's readiness to provide all support and harness all resources to achieve better health for Egyptians. They hoped the symposium would produce recommendations that would benefit society's health.
The symposium addressed several key themes, most notably: the features of women's health in Egypt; understanding the experiences of mothers of children suffering from dwarfism in Egyptian society; women's and children's health in Egypt: psychological and social perspectives; climate change and women's cancer in the Middle East and North Africa; assessing the health impacts associated with temperature; the African Center for Women's Health: activities and challenges; maternal mortality in Egypt: a situation analysis; women in advanced age; and women's and children's health: new horizons in Egypt.
The symposium was attended by Dr. Ghada Nada, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health and Population in Alexandria, Dr. Mohamed Afifi, Dr. Mohamed Issa, and Dr. Nema Obeid from the World Health Organization, Dr. Fayrouz Ashour, Dr. Rabab Bennis from Save the Children, Dr. Ibrahim Kharboush, Dr. Ahmed Mandeel, and Dr. Ibrahim El-Kurdany, professors at the Higher Institute of Public Health, and a large number of deans of faculties, faculty members, researchers, and specialists in the field of public health.