Health Inequities in the South-East Asia Region

Poor people encounter high rates of illness and premature deaths from preventable causes and are thus more vulnerable to disease. In the WHO South-East Asia Region, many Member countries carry a significant proportion of the total burden of disease in the Region. Available evidence indicates that inequalities in social and economic determinants of health exist both within and across countries in the Region. The less educated, marginalized, women, children and the elderly living in rural areas and urban slums carry a conspicuous burden of disease.