Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) and the Sarawak government are preparing to host the 54th Asia Pacific Academic Consortium for Public Health (APACPH) Conference 2023 from October 30 to November 1, 2023.
Supported by Business Events Sarawak (BESarawak), the conference will be held at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching, and an expected 800 public health experts, practitioners and industry collaborators from across the world are expected to attend.
The theme for the 54th APACPH Conference is Transcending the New Normal: Strengthening Public Health Through Education, Research and Collaboration. In addition to workshops and symposia, delegates will visit UNIMAS’ Malaria Research Centre and Institute of Health and Community Medicine to tour the facilities. They will also tour the Sarawak Biodiversity Centre.
Sim Kui Hian, Sarawak’s deputy premier and minister for public health, housing and local government, said in a press release: “Public health is extremely important. It goes beyond preventing and responding to diseases – it is about giving everyone access to the right healthcare services and facilities to improve their quality of life and live longer.
“The government has spent decades focusing on the improvement of healthcare and medicine but today, we are facing new challenges that need more research, collaboration and innovation. The 54th APACPH Conference will be at the heart of community and public health education and transform Sarawak into a global hub for public health research and learning.”
One of Sarawak’s biggest challenges is having to meet the public healthcare needs of three million people; concentrated in its urban districts and dispersed throughout the rural areas. Current governmental efforts include forming the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee, building the Sarawak Heart Centre, and investing RM200 million (US$45 million) in the Sarawak Infectious Disease Centre. The government is also in talks with the Ministry of Health Malaysia to open a cancer care centre.
Some anticipated impacts from the conference include beefing up action plans to assist higher education institutions to achieve United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and expand their members’ networks at the local and international levels through strategic collaborations.
Amelia Roziman, BESarawak’s CEO said: “The 54th APACPH Conference is a strong event to reflect the importance of purpose-driven business events in sector and community development. We are working with the conference committee to address four United Nations Sustainable Development Goals which are Good Health and Well-being; Quality Education; Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, and Partnerships for the Goals. The legacy that we hope for is that this conference in Sarawak is the key to Malaysia and Asia’s public health developments.”
