.png)
KUALA LUMPUR – The transboundary haze issue is not on the formal agenda of the 17th Asean Health Ministers’ Meeting (AHHM), but Asean health ministers will hold side discussions on the matter, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said.
He said the issue could also be raised during meetings involving senior health officials, as Asean countries continued to address regional health concerns through various health clusters.
“There is none (on the agenda) but we will have side discussions among our ministers. In the light of our clusters (meetings), we can embrace that,” Dzulkefly told a press conference on the 17th AHMM here on Thursday.
Asked whether Malaysia planned to raise the matter with Indonesia through a bilateral discussion, Dzulkefly said the issue had already been raised.
“We must follow through,” he said.
The development comes amid an increase in land and forest fires in Indonesia over the past month, with thick haze from burning in Kalimantan reaching Malaysia.
According to forest monitoring platform Nusantara Atlas, around 182,000 hectares of land and forest were burned in July alone, nearly twice the total area burned during the first half of the year.
The fires have contributed to high Air Pollution Index (API) readings in several areas, with schools forced to close amid deteriorating air quality.
An emergency was also recently declared in Serian as haze conditions worsened.
The issue highlights the health implications of transboundary air pollution, particularly when smoke from large-scale fires crosses national borders and affects communities in neighbouring countries.
The 17th AHMM is being hosted by Malaysia from Sept 7 to 11 in Kuala Lumpur under the theme “Healthy Asean: Together Towards Equitable, Future-Ready Health Systems.”
While transboundary haze is not included as a formal agenda item, Dzulkefly’s remarks indicate that the issue remains an area of concern that Asean health ministers can address through informal and bilateral discussions.
