During the JEE mission in early December 2023, Armenia’s capacities in 19 technical areas were evaluated through a consultative process that involved national subject matter experts and the JEE team. This week-long process led to consensus on scores and priority actions across the 19 technical areas. Armenia’s commitment to strengthening its IHR core capacities is evident from their decision to undergo a second JEE, following the first one in August 2016. Since then, Armenia has been working to develop and improve its public health capabilities and capacities, despite being significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The national and local responses to the pandemic highlighted areas that can be further strengthened, but the health sector in Armenia showed resilience by maintaining essential health services and high vaccination rates through the national immunization programme. The recent humanitarian crisis caused by the military conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh led to the forced displacement of over 100 thousand refugees, bringing a variety of health issues. This crisis serves as a reminder of the importance of being prepared to respond to complex emergencies that require collaboration between public health, security, and other concerned sectors.
After reviewing the findings from field visits and technical discussions, the external team identified cross-cutting themes and challenges that impact all 19 technical areas. Based on these findings, four recommendations are proposed to address these challenges and improve Armenia’s capacity in key technical areas.