Nearly 1.9 billion people worldwide are obese, which amounts to quarter of the worlds population, revealed a study by the World Summit of Governments in Dubai. Doctors and specialists attending the summit on Monday predicted an increase in the number of obese people to reach 50 percent of the global population. They indicated that obese people are a burden on national security in their countries, given that many of them are unfit for military service, and they are vulnerable to life-threatening diseases, according to German Press Agency. Chairman of VPS Healthcare Group in the UAE, Gulf and India, Shamsheer Vayalil, called for increased awareness of modern diseases and the establishment of a partnership between public and private sectors in various countries to help develop the medical sector. Vayalil stated that this partnership is the guarantor of providing quality health services to citizens in the countries. He added that if governments can not achieve partnership with the private medical sector, they must raise their budgets to allow their services to be developed, compete and excel in the sector. The Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Ghebreyesus said that the most important challenge facing the private medical sector in partnership with governments is that it works basically according to the principle of "profitability." “Strategic investments in health systems globally, along with improved preparedness, surveillance and response capabilities can all help us in our mission towards a pandemic-free world,” he said at the summit. “This is not only the job of people in the health sector. Everyone has a role to play. There is room for improvement and it is vital that we map the global capacity for response," he concluded. Lebanese Health Minister Ghassan Hasbani said that many countries need to accept the concept of partnership between the public and private sectors in the health sector. He noted that the private sector has the ability to work more flexibly and efficiently than the government, which makes the partnership meaningful, and enables governments to develop their capabilities.