This June, the newly established Gulf CDC organised a two-day Public Health Surveillance Workshop with the objective of providing a forum for a broad spectrum of surveillance and data experts from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states and from the globe to exchange knowledge, build networks, and have fruitful collaboration. It also aimed at providing a technical overview of the available surveillance systems in the GCC region and globally.

The workshop also contributed to the regional prioritization of diseases and indicators for an effective regional coordination by the Gulf CDC.

The SORMAS Foundation was invited to present SORMAS experiences from around the world including best practices and lessons learnt, which contributed to a better understanding of SORMAS as a Global Good and tool for epidemic/pandemic management, as well as the role of the SORMAS Foundation for its sustainability and support to countries.

It was a pleasure to have contributed to the shaping of the surveillance systems in the region!