Background
On 17 March 2026 in Phnom Penh, the Ministry of Health, through the Department for Communicable Disease Control, organized a workshop on the annual 2025 progress review of Cambodia’s implementation of the International Health Regulations (IHR). The event was held in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO) and was opened under the chairmanship of Secretary of State Dr. Yok Sambath.
The IHR framework defines core national capacities for prevention, detection, notification, assessment, and response to public health risks and acute events with potential international implications. Cambodia uses the WHO State Party Self-Assessment Annual Reporting (SPAR) tool to review these capacities on a regular basis.
Scope of Application
The workshop focused on assessing Cambodia’s IHR-related core capacities for the year 2025. Using the WHO SPAR tool, participants reviewed 15 national capacities and 35 indicators that relate to detection, assessment, notification, and response to public health risks and emergencies.
The review covered disease outbreak management, emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, and public health emergency response mechanisms. It also examined multisectoral coordination across relevant line ministries and institutions involved in public health risk management.
Key Provisions or Decisions
The workshop was organized around three main objectives:
- To review 2025 progress in building and maintaining national IHR core capacities using the WHO SPAR annual reporting tool, focusing on 15 capacities and 35 indicators related to detection, assessment, notification, and response to public health risks and acute events.
- To identify capacities achieved, key outputs, gaps, and challenges in managing emerging and re-emerging infectious disease events and public health emergencies.
- To strengthen national leadership and partnership in IHR implementation, prepare the 2025 SPAR results for timely submission to WHO, and formulate recommendations for the next SPAR reporting cycle in 2026.
Participants discussed the status of national systems, coordination mechanisms, and operational capacities, with the aim of consolidating the 2025 SPAR report and defining priority areas for improvement in the subsequent cycle.
Implications for Investors, Businesses, or Compliance
The review of IHR implementation and SPAR reporting informs Cambodia’s preparedness and response systems for public health risks, including infectious disease outbreaks and emergencies. Strengthened IHR core capacities can affect cross-border health security measures and interministerial coordination, which may influence travel, trade, and sectoral operations during health events.
While the workshop itself did not announce new binding regulations for the private sector, its outcomes may guide future policy, procedural adjustments, and coordination mechanisms that shape how health-related risks are managed across multiple ministries and sectors.
Official Source
The information is based on an official communication from the Ministry of Health describing the 17 March 2026 workshop on the annual 2025 progress review of International Health Regulations (IHR) implementation, organized by the Department for Communicable Disease Control in cooperation with the World Health Organization and attended by representatives of 18 ministries and seven development partners.
