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World Health Organization

WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.


International Programme on Chemical Safety:
Through the International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS), WHO works to establish the scientific basis for the sound management of chemicals, and to strengthen national capabilities and capacities for chemical safety.

Chemical safety is achieved by undertaking all activities involving chemicals in such a way as to ensure the safety of human health and the environment. It covers all chemicals, natural and manufactured, and the full range of exposure situations from the natural presence of chemicals in the environment to their extraction or synthesis, industrial production, transport, use and disposal.

Chemicals are part of our daily life. All living and inanimate matter is made up of chemicals and virtually every manufactured product involves the use of chemicals. Many chemicals can, when properly used, significantly contribute to the improvement of our quality of life, health and well-being. But other chemicals are highly hazardous and can negatively affect our health and environment when improperly managed.

WHO enlisted the following 10 chemicals or groups of chemicals of major public health concern:

  • Air pollution
  • Arsenic
  • Asbestos
  • Benzene
  • Cadmium
  • Dioxin and dioxin-like substances
  • Inadequate or excess fluoride
  • Lead
  • Mercury
  • Highly hazardous pesticides

(Source: WHO website)

CEPHED has been working on different public health and environment issues with the support of WHO and has successfully completed several research, awareness raising, capacity building activities, customizing of GAELP materials, produced and distributed throughout the country in recent years.
Some of the major activities carried out by CEPHED with WHO are enlisted here:

  • Developing Mercury Free Health Care Strategy 2011
  • Development of Environmental Sound Management of Health Care Waste Management and Mercury Free Health Care Services in Eastern Development Region of Nepal 2011.
  • Study of Environmental Health Condition of Health Care Facilities of Nepal 2012.
  • Developing Chemical Safety Guideline 2012.
  • Celebration of International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week of Action 2013.
  • Develop National Profile of Asbestos 2013.
  • Celebration of International Lead Poisoning Prevention Awareness Week 2014.