Turning momentum into action: Reducing pain and cost from oral diseases across the Western Pacific

A child missing school because of tooth pain, an older adult unable to eat the food they enjoy, a family struggling with cost to treat oral diseases. These everyday experiences show why oral health matters.

Across the WHO Western Pacific Region, countries and areas are taking practical and impactful steps to make essential oral health services more accessible and affordable through a primary health-care (PHC) approach, contributing towards achieving universal health coverage (UHC).

Why oral health matters

In the Western Pacific, about 960 million people – 43% of the population – live with untreated oral diseases.

It’s a little-known fact that oral diseases are the most common noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). These include dental caries, periodontal disease, tooth loss and oral cancer. These conditions can reduce confidence, limit social participation and affect quality of life. When untreated, oral diseases often lead to missed school or work and create a significant financial burden for families.

Comparison of case number of NCDs globally (United Nations, 2025, and WHO, 2022)

Regional momentum: Oral health becomes a Western Pacific priority for the first time

In 2025 at the 76^th WHO Regional Committee for the Western Pacific, Member States endorsed the Western Pacific Regional Implementation Plan for the Global Strategy and Action Plan on Oral Health. 

The implementation plan sets two regional targets and five acceleration projects to translate the global plan into action on the ground. WHO recently launched a regional dashboard to support countries in tracking progress. 

“There is no health without oral health,” says Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific. “Addressing this avoidable burden requires concrete commitments to integrate essential oral health services into national universal health care benefit packages through primary health care. WHO in the Western Pacific stands ready to support countries in achieving oral health for all by 2030.” 

Country initiatives leading the way

Malaysia: Regional and global leadership elevating oral health as a priority

Malaysia has demonstrated strong regional and global leadership in raising the visibility of oral diseases within NCD and UHC agendas. The country has been playing a key role in high-level advocacy, including hosting oral health side events in 2025 during the UN high-level meeting on NCDs in New York and at the World Health Assembly in Geneva, as well as participating in the high-level segment of the WHO Global Oral Health Meeting in Bangkok in 2024. These advocacy efforts reflect a strong commitment to elevating oral health as a public health priority.  

Honourable Datuk Seri Dr Haji Dzulkefly Ahmad, Minister of Health of Malaysia, at a World Health Assembly side event in May 2025 on the Countdown to the UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs: From Bangkok to New York, Advancing Universal Health Coverage for Oral Health by 2030. © Ministry of Health of Malaysia

Malaysia has also strengthened its own oral health system through the National Oral Health Policy and the National Oral Health Strategic Plan 2022–2030, which focus on prevention and integration into primacy care, partnership collaboration, standards and monitoring, research and development, as well as digital innovation. Malaysia is further advancing regional collaboration by hosting the 15th Asian Chief Dental Officers’ Meeting in Sabah in 2026, reinforcing its role as a regional convenor and catalyst for accelerating oral health integration into PHC across Asia.

“Let us be bold. Let us be strategic. Let us turn data into action and commitments into measurable outcomes. Because the price of inaction is far greater than the cost of prevention. Malaysia stands ready to collaborate with governments, WHO and civil society, to build a future where every smile is a symbol of health and dignity,” says H.E. Dato’ Dr Ahmad Faisal bin Muhamad, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations. 

H.E. Dato’ Dr Ahmad Faisal bin Muhamad, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations, delivers his keynote speech at the 80th United Nations General Assembly Side Event on Oral Health: Time to Act on Sugars: Advancing Health Equity and Tackling NCDs with a Focus on Oral Diseases. © Ministry of Health of Malaysia

Solomon Islands: Building primary health-care capacity for oral health 

With WHO support, Solomon Islands has begun training primary health-care workers to deliver essential oral health services as part of routine care. With only 50 dentists in a country of approximately 850 000 people spread across multiple islands, this approach helps address a burden that cannot be met by the oral health workforce alone.

The training focuses on oral examinations, hygiene counselling, fluoride with varnish applications, silver diamine fluoride to halt tooth decay, fissure sealants, screening, age‑appropriate counselling and restorative care using glass ionomer cement, in line with WHO guidance and including referral pathways for timely follow‑up. The training contributes to the regional goal of embedding oral health in primary health systems, and the insights gained will help inform an updated WHO training toolkit for oral health.

“We are often the first point of contact for families, especially in remote areas,” says Allen Aluta, a nurse at Kukum Area Health Centre in Solomon Islands. “With these new skills, we can help prevent pain, identify problems early and support communities that dentists simply cannot reach on their own. This makes oral health more accessible for everyone.”

Nurse Allen Aluta assists in a dental procedure. © WHO / T. Bayandorj

During the WHO Executive Board’s February 2026 session, Board Member Dr Paul Popora Bosawai, the former Solomon Islands Minister of Health and Medical Services, said: “The highest burden of oral diseases and their shared risk factors with NCDs makes oral health a cross-cutting issue for both NCDs and healthy ageing. Guided by the WHO Global Oral Health Strategy and Action Plan 2023-2030 and the Bangkok Declaration in 2024, we are advancing a regional implementation plan to strengthen policies, integrate oral health with primary health care and universal health coverage, expand workforce capacity and scale up prevention.” 

Tonga: Using essential dental medicines to address caries among children

Tonga is championing the use of silver diamine fluoride in preschool oral health programmes through the Malimali Project. “Malimali” meaning “smile” is a school-based programme teaching children how to brush their teeth with fluoride toothpaste with 1000-1500 ppm and use mouth rinses with fluoride to improve oral health in children.

Silver diamine fluoride is an essential dental medicine and a cost‑effective, non‑invasive treatment for stopping tooth decay. It can be applied easily in primary health-care settings without special equipment, helping to reduce tooth decay at a young age and prevent more complex conditions later in life. 

“Using silver diamine fluoride in preschools makes a real difference,” explains Dr Sisilia Fifita, Chief Dental Officer, Ministry of Health of Tonga. “It helps to stop the progression of tooth decay, avoiding unnecessary treatment costs. This works well because we can also address the risk factors, such as reducing sugar intake and promoting the use of fluoride toothpaste with 1000-1500 ppm.”

Students in a classroom in Tonga. © WHO / Tini Media

Caries rates among children dropped from 90% in 2001 to 68% a decade later. Nearly all primary schools in Tonga now participate in the Malimali programme which has become part of the curriculum, ensuring sustainable oral health education. 

Cambodia: National action plan for oral health development for stronger governance 

Cambodia was one of the first countries to develop a national action plan for oral health aligned with the Global Strategy and Action Plan on Oral Health 2023–2030. This involved coordination with stakeholders from institutions with the Ministry of Health, academics, nongovernmental organizations and partners to identify priority areas, focusing on what is feasible and achieving quick wins. 

In collaboration with WHO, Cambodia also conducted dissemination and adaptation of the National Action Plan for Oral Health 2023-2030 at the provincial and local levels. Together with the functional action plan and the Oral Health Bureau within the Ministry of Health, the country is strengthening governance to continue implementing the Action Plan. 

The Oral Health Bureau emphasized that the National Action Plan provides a strong foundation to guide implementation nationwide, underscoring the focus on practical steps and measurable outcomes while maintaining alignment with global and regional priorities.

Launch of the National Action Plan for Oral Health in Cambodia. © Ministry of Health of Cambodia

Moving forward 

Across the Western Pacific Region, practical high‑impact actions are taking place. Countries are using essential dental medicines, expanding the scope of primary health-care workers to include oral health in their portfolios, and strengthening regional leadership for oral health. 

Together, these efforts are accelerating progress towards the ambitious yet achievable goal of universal health coverage for oral health by 2030, contributing to achieving WHO’s overarching vision and mandate of Health for All.