This year, the WHO South-East Asia Region established the WHO South-East Asia Award for Public Health Champion to recognize and honour exceptional contributions to improving public health in the Region. This award acknowledges individuals and institutions whose work has had a significant and lasting impact on public health outcomes in the Region.

1. Dr Satendra Singh, Director-Professor of Physiology at the University College of Medical Sciences and Guru Tegh Bahadur Hospital, Delhi, is being awarded for championing disability Inclusion in Health systems and medical education.
   
2. LEPRA Society, a renowned non-profit organization dedicated to the eradication of leprosy, is being awarded for its exceptional contribution in the area of Neglected Tropical Diseases and disability.
3. The Female Community Health Volunteers (FCHVs) programme of Nepal is being awarded for its transformative role in improving maternal and child health, increasing immunization coverage, promoting nutrition, and managing disease outbreaks, even in Nepal’s most geographically and socially challenged regions.