Driving Action on Stroke at the WHO - WSO at the 158th Executive Board Session

Submitted by the governments of Chile, Egypt, Palestine, Paraguay and Tunisia, Reducing the Burden of Stroke: Strengthening prevention, acute care, rehabilitation and health system readiness fills a long‑standing gap in global health policy by calling for dedicated, coordinated action on stroke. It urges Member States to recognise stroke as a major public health priority and to establish national objectives across the full care pathway—within cardiovascular and neurological health strategies, as well as universal health coverage plans.

With Executive Board approval secured, the resolution will now move to the World Health Assembly in May for formal adoption by Member States.

WSO’s Role and Response

Speaking on behalf of the World Stroke Organization which convenes the Global Stroke Action Coalition,Executive Director Mia Grupper delivered a formal statement welcoming the resolution and emphasizing the growing-and unequally distributed-global burden of stroke. She highlighted stroke’s significant contribution to the overall noncommunicable disease burden and endorsed the resolution as a comprehensive and coordinated approach that will help countries advance their global health and development commitments.

The new resolution reflects the key recommendations in Stroke Action Now, the global policy brief published in 2025 by the WSO‑convened Global Stroke Action Coalition. Coalition partners are now developing a programme of follow‑up activities to support implementation and strengthen accountability for the recommended actions.