Members of the World Health Organisation (WHO) adopted a historic agreement on Tuesday to prepare for future pandemics after COVID-19.
“After three years of negotiations, the legally binding pact was adopted by the World Health Assembly in Geneva. WHO member countries welcomed its adoption with applause,” the statement said.
In April, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, speaking at the opening of the 13th session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) tasked with preparing an agreement on pandemic prevention, said that a new pandemic is not a theoretical risk but an epidemiological certainty.
In his opinion, a new pandemic could occur in 20 years, “or maybe tomorrow,” and humanity must be prepared for it.
The pandemic agreement is an international agreement designed to address shortcomings in co-operation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The WHO expects it to ensure a more equitable global response, help protect national health systems and strengthen co-operation between countries during pandemics.
The World Health Assembly is the main governing body of the WHO, consisting of 194 member states. Every year, usually in May, delegates from all WHO countries meet to agree on the organisation’s priorities and policies.
