The Health Ministry of Belarus and the East Europe Committee of the Swedish Health Care Community (SEEC) signed a memorandum of understanding in Minsk on February 10, BelTA has learnt from the press service of the Health Ministry.
The sides have signed the document to develop bilateral relations to increase the quality of medical services by ensuring reliable coordination of the projects financed by the Swedish committee.
Under the document, the sides agree to support cooperation projects in development and integration of primary care, medical care, prevention of infectious diseases including antibiotic resistance, HIV and Aids, prevention of children's accidents, in the area of mental health including prevention of the use of legalized drugs and banned drugs and also the formation of the healthcare system. Each of the sides may offer other cooperation areas.
The Health Ministry undertakes to support joint projects and events, provide necessary resources, take part in coordination advisory committees, promote contacts with government and local authorities. The Swedish side undertakes to provide financing for the projects in line with the agreement signed with the Swedish International Development Agency of the East Europe Committee of the Swedish Health Care Community.
The memorandum takes effect from the date of signing and will be valid till December 31, 2010, with possible prolongation for two more years.
The East Europe Committee of the Swedish Health Care Community (SEEC) is a non-governmental organisation supported by the government of Sweden and financed by the Swedish International Development Agency. In the mid 1990s the committee started its healthcare activities in the Baltic states and northwest Russia. Since 2004, the focus of cooperation has increasingly been on Belarus. In 2006, the Belarusian and Swedish sides signed the first memorandum of mutual understanding for 2007-2008.
Successful primary care projects are underway in the Brest and Gomel oblasts. Enhancing the quality of laboratory diagnostics and standardization of STIs research is very important for the projects on intensifying STI/HIV preventive measures and control, new methods of treatment through improving the diagnostics with the use of DNA and immunologic test-systems. Cooperation projects related to extended training of young psychiatrists, suicide prevention and combating alcoholism have been implemented, too.