This three-day inter-ministerial meeting aimed to regulate the safe reopening of schools after COVID, to make every school a Health Promoting School (HPS), and to scale up implementation of comprehensive school health programmes that promote the health and wellbeing of children and adolescents. It was organized by the World Health Organization (WHO)-Southeast Asia Region Office (SEARO) in collaboration with United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and World Food Programme (WFP) virtually in New Delhi, India, on 12–14 October 2021, involving health and education ministers of SEAR countries, child and adolescent of health experts, as well as the representatives from UN agencies and key partners to consider advancing school health programmes in South-East Asia countries to meet the Global Standard on Health Promoting Schools.