Islamabad: Federal Minister for National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, Syed Mustafa Kamal, has launched Pakistan's Wastewater Environmental Surveillance (WES) Strategy and the National WES Genomics Dashboard, marking a significant step in the enhancement of the nation's public health surveillance capabilities.
According to the Aga Khan University, the launch event was organized by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and attended by senior officials from various health departments, municipal authorities, academia, and international partners. The strategy is aimed at improving early warning systems, outbreak detection, and evidence-based decision-making in public health. The Federal Minister emphasized the need for strengthening wastewater treatment systems and urged for ongoing collaboration between government, academia, and international entities to sustain the national WES program.
Dr. Muhammad Salman, Chief Executive Officer of NIH, stated that the WES platform would facilitate early detection of priority pathogens, supporting evidence-based decisions and enhancing Pakistan's preparedness against public health threats through a coordinated One Health approach. The National WES Dashboard, hosted by NIH, will provide real-time monitoring, geographic mapping, trend analysis, and assist in outbreak preparedness.
Developed through a consultative process by NIH in collaboration with Aga Khan University and the Duke-NUS Centre for Outbreak Preparedness, Singapore, the Pakistan WES Strategy provides a national framework for wastewater surveillance, strengthening laboratory and genomic surveillance, and fostering stakeholder coordination.
Dr. Vincent Pang from the Duke-NUS Centre noted the importance of connecting science with public health action, highlighting the role of strong partnerships in sustaining the National WES program. Dr. Afreenish Amir of NIH reported that pilot implementation in several cities has demonstrated the effectiveness of wastewater surveillance as an early warning tool, with potential for nationwide expansion to support outbreak detection and timely public health interventions.