Numerous successes and achievements in health development throughout 2023 do not make Surabaya Mayor, Eri Cahyadi, complacent at all. Moreover, Cak Wali's enthusiasm and aspiration has hit the new high to make Surabaya rise to the next level and take part in the international health arena.

After setting a record for the lowest stunting prevalence in Indonesia based on the Indonesian Nutritional Status Study, Surabaya made history once again with the declaration of 100% open defecation free (ODF) in March 2023. Additionally, Surabaya also succeeded in maintaining the first position in the performance assessment of stunting eradication by the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2 (two) consecutive years. Apart from that, Surabaya received various awards on national and international scales, such as the award of ASEAN Environmentally Sustainable City, eradication of Covid-19, Integration of Primary Health Services, Free from Yaws, innovation of community movement in implementing immunization, as well as implementation of Universal Health Coverage reaching 100%. Furthermore, Surabaya successfully maintained the title of Swastisaba Wistara for the third time, which is the highest healthy city category in Indonesia. Besides that, the city achieved the first rank in National STBM Award in primary category. With all these achievements accompanied by systematic and sustainable efforts to create a smart healthy city, Surabaya was chosen by the Ministry of Health to represent Indonesia in the World Health City Forum which was held in South Korea in November, 2023.

Mayor Eri Cahyadi enlightened that the success formula for various accomplishments in the enactment of healthy city in Surabaya was the collaboration of all stakeholders. This aligns with the meaning and purpose of the establishment of healthy city in Indonesia. The implementation of a healthy city is the realization of a city that is clean, beautiful, comfortable, safe and healthy for residents to live in, that is achieved through the implementation of 9 (nine) arrangements and activities integrated and agreed upon by the community and the City Government. The 9 (nine) healthy city arrangements are as follows:

1. Independent and healthy community life
2. Housing and public facilities
3. Educational units
4. Market
5. Offices and Industries
6. Healthy tourism
7. Transportation and orderly road traffic
8. Social protection
9. Disaster management

Mayor Eri elaborated that the success of implementing healthy city in Surabaya could not be separated from the hard works of all elements of society in the City of Heroes.

"We have Healthy City Forum (FKS) at the city, sub-district and urban village levels. There is also a program called integration of primary health services, existing in neighborhood health centers, auxiliary neighborhood health centers as well as family integrated service posts. Besides that, we have an innovation called Kampung Madani. With Kampung Madani, the health movement can be undertaken in the grassroots level," uttered the mayor.

The City Mayor, who is familiarly called Cak Eri, revealed that the success in implementing the smart healthy city were also due to the contribution of the heads of RT, RW, LPMK, Kader Surabaya Hebat (KSH) and TP PKK. A sense of mutual care and mutual cooperation is automatically created when a city’s resident is in ailment.

"We create this circumstance to improve people’s health. In a way that when one of the residents becomes ill or undergoes unfortunate experience, we help him together," he explained.

What is no less important in developing Surabaya healthy city is the contribution from the academic community and non-governmental organizations. For example, Airlangga University facilitates both Surabaya Emas and 1P1P (1 Neighborhood Health Center, 1 Pediatrician) programs. Meanwhile, Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), for instance, Tunas Hijau is active in increasing the awareness of students to keenly participate in protecting and nurturing the environment. Some of the activities carried out by Tunas Hijau include the selection of Environmental Prince and Princess, socialization on disaster mitigation and beach clean-up activities by the students. Furthermore, the WASH Coalition consisting of UNICEF, Wahana Visi, Kotaku, IUWASH, WC-Koe, Habitat for Humanity, Pertamina, Pelindo and several other institutions plays a central role in realizing community-based total sanitation in this second largest city in Indonesia.

Cak Eri added that due to the strong synergy, health management in Surabaya had been integrated from upstream to downstream. Starting from improving health services in hospitals and neighborhood health centers, quickly managing spread of diseases, eradicating stunting, realizing open defecation free (ODF) and providing health insurance for all residents of Surabaya.

Eri assured that Surabaya City Government would continue to work hard to improve the welfare of its citizens. One of the efforts to achieve the goal is by registering in the WHO SEARO Healthy Cities network. With this registration, Surabaya will be accompanied and assisted by WHO SEARO, WHO Indonesia and the National Healthy Cities Forum regarding how to improve the quality of physical and mental well-being of the city’s residents as well as the quality of the city’s development in general.

According to WHO, a healthy city is a city that continuously improves its physical and social conditions and expands community resources so as to facilitate citizens to achieve their maximum potential. The World Health Organization has 6 (six) representative offices throughout the world and for the Southeast Asia region, it is named SEARO which stands for South East Asia Region.

Cak Wali signed a letter registering Surabaya in WHO SEARO Healthy Cities Network (HCN) on January 11, 2024. In the letter, Eri wrote that Surabaya City Government strengthened its commitment to implement a healthy city and was ready to integrate and synergize between Surabaya's Healthy City programs with global standards and WHO SEARO HCN’s norms.

The first meeting between WHO SEARO, WHO Indonesia and the National Healthy Cities Forum with Surabaya City Government and Surabaya Healthy City Forum was held on January 14, 2024. Led by General Administrative Assistant and also attended by Head of The Board of Regional Planning and Research Development (Bappedalitbang) as well as representatives from local government working units, Surabaya City Government expressed its readiness to take part in the WHO SEARO Healthy City certification.

The National Healthy Cities Forum, represented by Yuni Dwi Purwani, stated that the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Health appreciated the good intentions of Surabaya Mayor to increase the welfare and well-being of its citizens by registering in the WHO SEARO healthy cities network.

"I have conveyed Surabaya's wish to join WHO SEARO healthy cities network to the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Health. Both Ministries really appreciate the initiative of the mayor," Yuni emphasized. This initiative strengthens Surabaya's commitment to support the Healthy Indonesia program at the national level.