Geneva -- The BRICS countries -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa -- pledged in a joint communiqu on the sidelines of the 66th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, to strengthen intra-BRICS cooperation in promoting health of their peoples.

According to the communiqu released to Xinhua Wednesday, the BRICS decided to continue cooperation in the sphere of health through the Technical Working Groups on five thematic issues, such as strengthening health surveillance system; reducing noncommunicable disease risk factors.

The communiqu said that the five countries discussed the World Health Organization (WHO) report on Monitoring Achievements of the Millennium Development Goals and acknowledged that despite progress made, much needs to be done if these Goals are to be achieved by 2015 and beyond.

The BRICS reiterated their commitment to support WHO as a coordinating authority in global health and expressed support for the leadership role and broad directions of WHO's action plan and further emphasized the importance of providing access to quality primary health care services for all.

To achieve the universal health coverage, the BRICS countries agreed to identify their institutions to work with WHO in developing a monitoring framework that would help countries track their progress to this end.

The BRICS emphasized the importance for technology transfer as a way to empower developing countries, having underlined the need to establish the BRICS network of technological cooperation and jointly promote access to affordable, safe, efficacious and quality medical products through the use of the Agreement on Trade- Related Aspects of Intellectual Property.

Nearly 3,000 delegates from 194 member states of WHO attended the annual meeting that opened Monday in Geneva. During the eight- day session, issues on top of the agenda include WHO reforms, targets for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases, monitoring of the achievement of the United NationsMillennium Development Goals, health in the post-2015 development agenda, pandemic influenza preparedness and universal health coverage.