The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has concluded the first day of his high-profile, two-day State visit to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, using the diplomatic mission to underscore the robust, multifaceted partnership between the global health body and the Jordanian government. The discussions and site visits centered heavily on universal health coverage, the critical integration of mental health into routine medical care, and sustained humanitarian health action across a volatile and deeply challenged region.
A central moment of the journey was Dr. Tedros’s official meeting with His Majesty King Abdullah II. The high-level encounter reflected both the profound importance of the State visit and Jordan’s sustained leadership in advancing public health as a paramount national and global priority. High-level deliberations between the WHO chief and the Jordanian monarch focused on comprehensive strategies for strengthening national health systems, expanding equitable access to essential medical care, and securing long-term, sustainable support for emergency health responses throughout the Middle East. Particular emphasis was placed on the ongoing needs of the Palestinian people, critically ill and injured patients evacuated from Gaza directly to Jordan for specialized treatment, and the millions of refugees generously hosted inside Jordan’s borders.
Expressing deep gratitude during the engagements, Dr. Tedros articulated his profound appreciation to King Abdullah II for his unwavering personal commitment to advancing universal health coverage. The WHO leader also extended formal thanks to His Majesty and the people of Jordan as a whole for their extraordinary solidarity, boundless empathy, and enduring generosity in providing comprehensive health services to more than three million refugees, primarily originating from neighboring Syria and Gaza, who currently reside within the country.
Elaborating on these sentiments, Dr. Tedros noted that the international community remains deeply grateful for Jordan’s broader humanitarian leadership. He specifically highlighted His Majesty’s visionary Medical Corridor initiative, an innovative and life-saving operational mechanism that successfully delivers critical, advanced medical care to ill and injured children evacuated from Gaza. Through these ongoing efforts, Jordan continues to demonstrate to the global community what it genuinely means to put health, dignity, and shared humanity first, even amid severe geopolitical strain.
Following his discussions at the highest levels of government, Dr. Tedros traveled to a specialized, WHO-supported hospital actively providing advanced, compassionate care to children who have been medically evacuated from Gaza. During the hospital tour, the Director-General walked the wards to meet directly with young patients and their resilient families, as well as the exhausted yet dedicated frontline health workers who are tirelessly delivering life-saving treatments for severe traumatic injuries, advanced cancer cases, and a wide array of other serious, complex medical conditions.
This poignant field visit powerfully highlighted the irreplaceable importance of maintaining the medical evacuation corridor through Jordan. It simultaneously reinforced the urgent, ongoing necessity for sustained international financial and logistical support to ensure that vulnerable children and other individuals in dire need can safely access essential, high-quality care without interruption.
In addition to his clinical visits, the Director-General convened a high-level strategic roundtable meeting with key health development partners, major donor countries, various United Nations sister agencies, and philanthropic organizations. The closed-door and plenary discussions centered squarely on identifying and coordinating critical financing priorities aimed at bolstering health system strengthening within Jordan. Furthermore, the participants evaluated ongoing humanitarian health actions, focusing closely on scaling up comprehensive mental health services and adequately supporting developing nations and host governments that shoulder the immense operational responsibility of housing large refugee populations. Dr. Tedros warmly welcomed the strong collaboration, unity, and continued dedication displayed by international partners to invest meaningfully in health infrastructure and human capital in Jordan and across the wider region.
Earlier in the itinerary, the WHO leader held focused bilateral discussions with Jordan’s Minister of Health. These talks honed in on practical measures to fortify Jordan’s domestic health system and accelerate progress toward universal health coverage. Jordan has successfully established a formidable reputation for global leadership by championing a robust primary health care approach. This strategic model has facilitated the seamless integration of mental health services into routine, everyday medical care, guaranteeing that ordinary citizens can access psychological support with the same normalcy as physical ailments. The World Health Organization continues to provide vital technical support to this trailblazing work, operating largely through the Director-General’s Special Initiative for Mental Health.
Adding a notable international dimension to the diplomatic mission, the WHO Director-General was accompanied during several key public and private engagements by Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex. The royal couple participated in their official capacities as the founders of Archewell Philanthropies and as long-standing, dedicated supporters of the World Health Organization’s global mission. Over the years, Archewell has generously supported a diverse range of WHO initiatives, spanning from the global pursuit of equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines to critical medical evacuation operations and expansive mental health awareness programmes. Prince Harry participated actively as a vocal, committed ally of the WHO’s ongoing mental health advocacy, consistently highlighting the absolute necessity of investing heavily in psychological well-being across diverse communities and emergency settings, while drawing particular attention to the unique struggles faced by men, young people, and children.
Reflecting on this high-profile partnership, Dr. Tedros remarked that he wanted to extend his sincere thanks to international partners, specifically mentioning Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. He noted that their unwavering commitment to championing mental health and humanitarian action has played an instrumental role in bringing much-needed visibility, vital resources, and renewed hope to some of the world’s most marginalized and vulnerable communities. Their collaborative advocacy, he added, is actively helping to propel forward the WHO’s foundational mission to ensure health for all human beings.
Echoing these collaborative themes, Prince Harry shared his own perspective on the visit. He stated that it was a profound honor to join the Director-General of the World Health Organization in Jordan—a nation that he described as leading the entire international community by inspiring example through its deep-seated compassion, remarkable national resilience, and institutional innovation. Through their ongoing philanthropic work with Archewell, the Duke noted that he and his wife have witnessed first-hand the tangible, life-altering impact of the WHO’s concerted efforts to support mental health and deliver emergency medical care in the world’s most difficult environments.
Prince Harry affirmed their shared dedication, stating that they remain deeply committed to advancing public awareness, actively reducing social stigma, and expanding equitable access to professional mental health support for every single individual whose life has been upended by armed conflict and humanitarian crisis. He emphasized that mental health is not merely an optional component of healthcare, but rather a fundamental prerequisite for human recovery, individual dignity, and long-term regional peace. He concluded by affirming that he and his wife are proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the WHO and dedicated partners around the world to ensure mental health remains a permanent global priority.
As the multi-day diplomatic and technical mission moves into its final phases, Dr. Tedros’s itinerary includes a scheduled visit to Jordan’s National Center for Rehabilitation of Addicts. The facility, which receives robust support from the World Health Organization, delivers fully integrated medical, psychological, and social rehabilitation services to individuals in need.
In addition to the rehabilitation center, the WHO chief is slated to meet directly with grassroots community leaders and prominent women’s groups, including representatives from the Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development. He will also tour the renowned King Hussein Cancer Center to hold substantive discussions regarding cutting-edge advances in oncology care and to explore deeper avenues for regional medical collaboration.
The high-level State visit will ultimately draw to a close following a series of final, targeted engagements with international and local partners who support critical humanitarian operations across the Middle East. These concluding meetings will further reinforce Jordan’s indispensable, strategic status as a peaceful and reliable regional hub for emergency medical evacuations, rapid humanitarian response, and enduring health system resilience.
[Paul Garwood, Communications Officer, WHO]
[WHO Media Team, World Health Organization]
