A personal reflection on the REACH Network ministerial gathering held during WHA78, by REACH Network Co-chair Professor Samba Sow
GENEVA, 21 MAY 2025
#WHA78
At the 78th World Health Assembly, I had the honour of co-hosting a high-level Ministerial Roundtable on child survival with my esteemed REACH Network Co-chair, Honourable Minister Muhammad Ali Pate. It was a profound moment – due to the urgency of our shared mission, but also due to the strength and character of the leadership present in the room.
What made this gathering so powerful was not the speeches, but the solidarity. Ministers from across Africa and South-East Asia came together, not to present isolated successes, but to align around a collective truth: no child should die from a preventable cause. Not now. Not ever.
A vision becoming reality
The REACH Network was created to serve this exact purpose – to be a platform for countries to lead on their own terms, while supporting one another through shared learning, data, and policy alignment. At the Roundtable, we saw this vision come to life. From Mali to Niger, from Indonesia to Senegal, countries are taking bold steps to integrate delivery, to do more with limited resources, and to be accountable always to the families we serve.
I was deeply moved by the clarity and courage shown by my Ministerial colleagues. In particular, the words of the Malian Minister of Health and Social Development, Colonel Dr Assa Badiallo Touré, stood out:
“REACH is more than a programme – it is a political choice to invest in children.”
That choice is not always easy. It requires confronting inefficiencies, sharing power, and shifting from pilot projects to real, systems-level change.
Finding solutions together
Looking ahead, our task is clear. We must continue to build on this momentum, through ongoing ministerial dialogue, through cross-border collaboration, and by ensuring that our policies are guided by data, equity, and the lived realities of our communities.
REACH is not a solution in itself – but it is a space in which we can create solutions together. I am grateful to our partners who stand with us, and even more grateful to the Ministers and country teams who are leading the way.
“Now is the time to turn commitments into action. Children across Africa and Asia are looking to us – we must not fail them.”
Professor Samba Sow
Co-chair, REACH Network
