Antigua Guatemala, March 2025 (OPS) - With the technical support of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the countries of the Central American Integration System (SICA) met during the Strategic Meeting of National Officials Responsible for Donation and Transplantation, which took place in the context of the Project: Strengthening the regulatory framework related to renal transplantation and organ donation, as part of the triangular cooperation with the Executive Secretariat of the Council of Ministers of Health of Central America and the Dominican Republic (SE-COMISCA), the National Transplant Organization of Spain (ONT), the Panamanian Transplant Organization (OPT) promoted by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation-Spain-SICA Fund (AECID-FES).
This strategic meeting marks the beginning of a process that will be of great benefit for the response to organ transplantation and donation in the Central American Region and the Dominican Republic, given that its objective is to strengthen the regulatory framework related to renal transplantation and organ donation in the SICA Member States. The objective was to collect the necessary information for the survey of the current state of Organ Donation and Transplantation in the countries of the SICA Region, being an important step in the implementation of the Strategy and Plan of Action on Donation and Equitable Access to Organ, Tissue, and Cell Transplants, 2019-2030 (CD57/11) which is to promote equitable access to organ, tissue and cell transplantation, based on voluntary donation and observing the guiding principles on transplantation to help meet the growing demand for these treatments, save lives and improve the health conditions of individuals and communities.
The meeting was attended by national delegates from all SICA Member States and international experts from Spain's National Transplant Organization, a WHO collaborating center in this area, and the Pan American Health Organization. These professionals contributed their experience and regional vision to the strengths and challenges that countries face in developing their national programs and promoting deceased donation.
