By: IPP Bureau
Last updated : June 13, 2026 8:53 am
Two-year collaboration aims to strengthen primary healthcare systems, generate real-world evidence, and support responsible adoption of AI and digital health technologies across South-East Asia
World Health Organization (WHO) South-East Asia Regional Office (SEARO) and The George Institute for Global Health, India have signed a project collaboration agreement to strengthen the design, implementation, evaluation, and scale-up of evidence-based digital health interventions.
The partnership will focus on enhancing primary healthcare systems and improving the prevention and management of NCDs, which account for more than half of all deaths across the Region.
The project collaboration agreement will remain in effect for an initial two-year period, from April 1, 2026, to March 31, 2028.
Under the agreement, the two organizations will work to advance implementation science for digital health interventions in primary care, particularly in the prevention and management of non-communicable diseases.
The collaboration will generate real-world evidence on the effectiveness, feasibility, scalability, cost-effectiveness, and equity impact of digital health programmes integrated within healthcare systems.
A key focus of the partnership will be the development of guidance, frameworks, and tools to support the design and implementation of AI-powered digital health programmes aligned with WHO's digital health strategies.
The collaboration will also facilitate knowledge exchange and capacity building through technical workshops, webinars, and learning platforms aimed at policymakers, researchers, and healthcare implementers.
In addition, the partnership seeks to strengthen collaboration with ministries of health and global stakeholders to support the integration of digital health innovations into national health programmes and broader health system strategies.
The initiative will also contribute to the development and dissemination of technical guidance, evaluation frameworks, and toolkits for the responsible deployment of AI in healthcare systems across low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).