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WHA79 - 15.2
Statement

FDI and IADR statement on Item 15.2 Well-being and health promotion

Agenda item 15.2 Well-being and health promotion

Documents A79/5 and EB158/2025/REC/1

FDI with the support of IADR welcome the report on well‑being and health promotion and its emphasis on cross‑sectoral collaboration. 

With nearly 60% of the working-age population employed1, workplaces are vital for disease prevention and health promotion. Oral diseases affect 3.7 billion people worldwide2 and cost about US$710 billion annually3. Integrating oral health into workplace well-being strategies is therefore both a public health and economic imperative. 

FDI’s new Oral Health at Work report, grounded in country experiences, identifies practical pathways to translate policy into action through cross-sectoral collaborations. 

We urge Member States to:

  • Engage employers and workplaces in integrated health promotion initiatives inclusive of oral health.

  • Invest in research and programmes to identify scalable models for health promotion and well-being. 

Thank you.
(124 words, 874 characters) 


1 World Bank Open Data. Available from: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.EMP.TOTL.SP.ZS [Accessed 25 April 2026].

2 World Health Organization. Oral health. 2025. Available from: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/oral-health [Accessed 25 April 2026].

3 World Economic Forum. The Economic Rationale for a Global Commitment to Invest in Oral Health. Geneva: World Economic Forum; 2024.

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