UNITED NATIONS, Dhu-AlHijjah 07, 1437, September 09, 2016, SPA -- The World Health Organization (WHO) said Friday that eleven countries in South and East Asia have agreed to establish an emergency fund to strengthen their health services to better respond to outbreaks of diseases. Made up of India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, South Korea, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Timor-Leste, the South East Asia region is highly susceptible to disasters such as floods which can result in disease outbreaks. It is also threatened by a range of emerging diseases such as SARS, MERS, CoV, pandemic influenze, and Zika. In a resolution passed by the 11 countries at a WHO meeting in Sri Lanka, governments also agreed to increase the number of health workers and to provide them with training and better conditions in order to retain them. --SPA 21:36 LOCAL TIME 18:36 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w