Junaid Family Foundation to lead maternal health roundtable at World Health Assembly

By AI, Created 9:38 AM UTC, May 20, 2026, /AGP/ – The Junaid Family Foundation will convene global leaders in Geneva on May 22 during the 79th World Health Assembly to push wider use of multiple micronutrient supplements for maternal health. The discussion comes as maternal micronutrient deficiency remains widespread and officials and advocates look to scale a low-cost intervention with potential to save lives.

Why it matters: - Maternal micronutrient deficiency affects two out of three women of reproductive age worldwide. - The condition is linked to maternal mortality, pre-term births, and stunted child development. - Children’s Investment Fund Foundation estimates that global scale-up of multiple micronutrient supplements, or MMS, could save 600,000 lives by 2030. - MMS has been on the World Health Organization Essential Medicines List since 2021, but adoption remains uneven across low- and middle-income countries.

What happened: - The Junaid Family Foundation will convene a high-level roundtable on May 22, 2026, in Geneva, Switzerland, during the 79th World Health Assembly. - The discussion will bring together global leaders and policymakers focused on the use and scale of MMS for maternal health. - The roundtable will examine recent advancements, ongoing challenges and emerging opportunities tied to MMS use and scale-up. - The event will focus on shifting global best practices, including World Health Organization guidelines, implementation experiences and country-level adoption.

The details: - MMS is a supplement containing 15 essential vitamins and minerals. - The Foundation says the goal is to improve maternal and child birth outcomes through broader MMS use. - Junaid Family Foundation Chairman Ansir Junaid said Pakistan faces some of the highest birth volumes, deficiency rates and preventable maternal and child mortality rates in the world. - Junaid said diet alone cannot meet micronutrient needs in low-resource settings where food diversity is limited. - Junaid described MMS as a scalable, cost-effective solution with science and global policy support. - JFF currently supports the MMS program in Pakistan, one of the largest programs in the world. - The Foundation says that position gives it a link between direct implementation and global advocacy. - JFF says it is convening leaders from public health, philanthropy and community-based organizations to align on advocacy for evidence-based MMS intervention. - The Foundation says that effort is intended to strengthen maternal and child health in Pakistan and globally. - More information

Between the lines: - The roundtable appears aimed at turning a long-discussed maternal health intervention into a broader policy and implementation push. - Pakistan is central to the Foundation’s message because JFF already has a major on-the-ground program there. - The timing at World Health Assembly gives the Foundation a venue where global health policy, financing and implementation agendas overlap.

What’s next: - JFF is expected to use the Geneva roundtable to build alignment around MMS adoption and scale-up. - The Foundation will likely press for stronger coordination among policymakers, implementers and funders. - The key test will be whether the discussion translates into wider country-level implementation, especially in low- and middle-income markets.

The bottom line: - Junaid Family Foundation is using the World Health Assembly to argue that MMS should move from policy support to broader real-world deployment for mothers and children.