KATHMANDU, Sept 22: The World Health Organization (WHO) South-East Asia Regional Office has announced the winners of its newly instituted Public Health Champion Awards. Nepal’s Female Community Health Volunteers (FCHVs), disability inclusion advocate Dr. Satendra Singh and India’s LEPRA Society were recognized for their contributions to public health, the organizers said in a press release.
The FCHVs of Nepal were honored for their transformative work in maternal and child health, immunization, nutrition, and disease outbreak management, especially in the country’s most remote and underserved regions. Their efforts have helped reduce maternal mortality from 901 per 100,000 live births in 1990 to 151 in 2021, and under-five mortality from 162 to 28 per 1,000 live births, according to the 2022 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey and UNICEF. The FCHV program is internationally recognized as a low-cost, high-impact model for sustainable, gender-equitable, and community-led health systems, the press release said.
51,420 FCHVs serving people across Nepal
According to the press release, Dr Satendra Singh, Director-Professor of Physiology at the University College of Medical Sciences and GTB Hospital, Delhi, received the award in the individual category for his pioneering work in disability inclusion in health systems and medical education. Drawing on his lived experience with disability, Dr. Singh has advocated for reframing disability from a medical limitation to a human rights issue, influencing policies, curricula, and institutional practices in India and globally.
Similarly, the LEPRA Society, established in 1989, was recognized in the institutional category. The NGO has played a key role in medical innovations such as the development of Clofazimine for leprosy treatment, the introduction of Multi-Drug Therapy, and custom-made footwear to prevent ulcers. Operating across nine Indian states and 143 districts through 146 healthcare centers, LEPRA has expanded its work to combat tuberculosis, HIV, lymphatic filariasis, and COVID-19, serving marginalized communities with a focus on research, innovation, and compassionate care.
The press release further mentioned that the WHO South-East Asia Regional Office announced the Public Health Champion Award in June 2025 to honor individuals and institutions whose exceptional efforts have created lasting public health impact in the region. The award received 50 nominations from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Thailand.
The awardees will be felicitated during the 78th session of the WHO South-East Asia Regional Committee meeting in Colombo, Sri Lanka, the press statement read.
