Home > Events > Stronger leadership, partnership and national capacity for healthier lungs: chronic respiratory diseases in focus
The International Respiratory Coalition (IRC) and World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe will co-host this multi-country workshop to strengthen leadership, partnerships and national capacity for action on healthier lungs focusing on chronic respiratory diseases.
Date: 24 to 25 November 2026
Location: Budapest, Hungary
Background
Chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs) present a significant public health and health systems challenge for countries across the WHO European region.
Analyses show that in 2023 in the region, there were 56.2 million cases of asthma and 38.4 million cases of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), leading to a combined total of 349,200 early deaths and a societal cost of €311 billion.
To support countries in meeting these challenges, the WHO, with support from the European Respiratory Society (ERS), has developed a chronic respiratory disease policy and practice self-assessment tool, together with an approach for national roadmap development. National respiratory coalitions supported by the IRC are set to pilot the tools in their countries.
Event overview
Country delegations of representatives from the Ministries of Health, health care professionals, and those representing the lived experience community are invited to attend this WHO-IRC multi-country workshop: ‘Stronger leadership, partnership and national capacity for healthier lungs: chronic respiratory diseases in focus.’
With technical guidance from the WHO and through exchange with other participating national coalitions, over the course of the two-day workshop, each country delegation will:
- have the opportunity to assess its current CRD policies and practices;
- identify priority gaps and actions;
- and begin developing a national CRD roadmap.
Each participating country is expected to leave the workshop with drafts of its national CRD situation analysis, a priority action list, and an early outline of a national CRD roadmap.
This joint initiative advances IRC’s efforts to support national coalitions in developing funded national respiratory health plans that address prevention, treatment and care, to support our mission of reducing respiratory disease-related mortality by a third globally by 2030 in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
A detailed workshop agenda will be available in due course.