oa Qatar Steps up to Global Health Security: A Reflection on the Joint External Evaluation 2016

Since the commencement of the International Health Regulations (IHR, 2005) in 2007, global public health security has been faced with numerous emerging and ongoing events. Moreover, the Joint External Evaluation (JEE) is a voluntary tool developed in compliance with the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) that represents a reaction by the international health community towards the increased incidence of emerging and re-emerging diseases. Against this background, between 29th May and 2nd June 2016, a team of WHO consultants arrived to the State of Qatar to assess, in collaboration with national experts, the country's capacity to prevent, detect, and rapidly respond to threats of public health aspect. They identified areas of strength, weakness, and recommendations for improving national health security of Qatar in anticipation of the 2022 World Cup event. Qatar has demonstrated a leading role in the region through its commitment to International Health Regulations (2005) and community. Similarly, the Qatar was the first Arab state and seventh volunteering country globally to undergo the JEE process. In this review, we highlighted Qatar's achievements and shortcomings of IHR core capacities to inform healthcare professionals and the scientific community about the country's contribution toward global health security.