Latest news with #WHOPandemicAgreement
Hindustan Times
12-07-2025
- Health
- Hindustan Times
W.H.O. member States hold first meeting after Pandemic pact
The World Health Organisation (WHO) member states have held their first meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) on the WHO Pandemic Agreement that was adopted a couple of months ago, according to a statement issued by the UN health body on Friday. W.H.O. member States hold first meeting after Pandemic pact The aim of the meeting was to formalize next steps on implementing key provisions of the historic legal instrument to make the world safer from future pandemics, it said. The meeting was held late on Thursday. Brazil's Ambassador Tovar da Silva Nunes, co-chair of the IGWG Bureau guiding the negotiations, said in a statement that the first meeting was a critical moment in the global effort to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. The meeting was the first one after the World Health Assembly's landmark adoption on May 20, this year, of the WHO Pandemic Agreement. The agreement, which is legally binding, came into being because of the challenges faced during the Covid-19 crisis and the disjointed response to it, and aims to ensure countries work together for more effective prevention, preparation, and response to future pandemics. It will ensure that drugs, therapeutics and vaccines are globally accessible when the next pandemic hits. It requires participating manufacturers to allocate a target of 20% of their vaccines, medicines, and tests to the WHO during a pandemic to ensure poorer countries have access. 'Through the WHO Pandemic Agreement, countries recognized that global collaboration and action, based on equity, are essential for protecting people from future pandemics,' said Tovar. 'Now, through the IGWG, countries are breathing life into the Agreement by establishing the way forward to implement the Agreement's life-saving provisions.' The Assembly established the IGWG to, as a priority, draft and negotiate an annex to the WHO Pandemic Agreement on Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS). 'This PABS system is intended to enable safe, transparent and accountable access and benefit-sharing for PABS materials and sequence information. The outcome of the IGWG's work on the PABS annex will be submitted to the Seventy-ninth World Health Assembly in 2026 for its consideration,' read the statement. In addition to negotiating the PABS annex, the IGWG has been established to discuss procedural and other matters to prepare for the Conference of the Parties to the pandemic agreement and develop a proposal for the terms of reference for the Coordinating Financial Mechanism. 'Global collaboration is the foundation of an effective response to global threats,' said Matthew Harpur, fellow IGWG bureau co-chair, of the United Kingdom. The first meeting of the IGWG adopted the body's method of work, timeline of activities leading up to next year's World Health Assembly, and mode of engagement with relevant stakeholders, and elected co-chairs and vice chairs to lead the IGWG process. 'The IGWG also decided to identify experts to provide inputs on the PABS annex and possibly hold an informal briefing before the second meeting of the IGWG, which will be held on 15-19 September 2025,' read the statement.
Business Wire
07-07-2025
- Health
- Business Wire
AHF Webinar Panel Discussion—Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response After the Agreement: What Comes Next?
MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), in collaboration with the University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab, will cohost a webinar, 'Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response After the Agreement: What Comes Next?,' on Tuesday, July 8 at 10:00 AM EDT, virtually via Zoom. Register here. This timely webinar will explore the future of global pandemic governance following the adoption of the WHO Pandemic Agreement in May 2025, with a focus on the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) system. Recognized as a cornerstone of equity in pandemic response, the PABS annex aims to establish transparent mechanisms for sharing pathogens and the benefits derived from them, including vaccines, diagnostics, and treatments. The discussion will feature high-level diplomats involved in global health negotiations, a civil society leader focused on equity and accountability in Africa, and technical and policy experts from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and African Union Commission. Together, panelists will examine what has been finalized in the agreement, identify key unresolved elements, and explore the political, legal, and operational challenges that remain. The session will offer practical insights for governments, institutions, and advocates seeking to ensure the PABS annex delivers on its promise of equity before the agreement opens for signature in 2026. PANEL OBJECTIVES: This panel will provide attendees with timely insights into the WHO Pandemic Agreement and the next steps in shaping its Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) annex. Panelists—including global health negotiators, public health experts, and civil society advocates—will examine the agreement's implications for equity, assess the design of a functional and fair PABS system, and discuss political, legal, and operational challenges on the path to implementation. The session will explore how national, regional, and multilateral actors can engage in the negotiation process and ensure the agreement delivers meaningful and measurable benefits for all. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the stakes surrounding the PABS annex and learn strategies to support transparency, accountability, and inclusive governance in pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is a global non-profit organization providing cutting-edge medicine and advocacy to more than 2.4 million people in 48 countries worldwide in Africa, the Americas, the Asia/Pacific Region and Europe. We are currently the largest non-profit provider of HIV/AIDS medical care in the world. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: find us on Facebook: and follow us on Twitter: @aidshealthcare and Instagram: @aidshealthcare. The AHF Global Public Health Institute is an initiative of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation created to engage in global public health policy analysis and research to generate objective evidence that can inform improvements in public health policy at the global, regional, national, and local levels, particularly for infectious diseases. To learn more about the AHF Global Public Health Institute, visit The University of Miami Public Health Policy Lab is dedicated to advancing research, policy analysis, and collaborative initiatives that strengthen public health systems globally, with a particular focus on the Global South. Through interdisciplinary research, stakeholder engagement, and evidence-driven policy recommendations, the lab addresses critical challenges in global health governance, regional health cooperation, and infectious disease response. Our work informs strategies to enhance health equity, pandemic preparedness, and integrated health systems, fostering regional and international collaboration.
Scoop
28-05-2025
- Health
- Scoop
Pandemics To Pollution: WHO Assembly Delivers Landmark Health Decisions
28 May 2025 In addition, the Assembly endorsed a wide range of measures to promote health equity, reduce air pollution, and strengthen protections for vulnerable populations. ' The words 'historic' and 'landmark' are overused, but they are perfectly apt to describe this year's World Health Assembly,' WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at the Assembly's closing, ending nine days of intense debate and decisions. The centrepiece of the Assembly's outcomes was the WHO Pandemic Agreement, adopted on 20 May after more than three years of negotiations. The agreement, seen as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve global preparedness and response to future pandemics, aims to strengthen international coordination, enhance equity in access to medical tools and ensure that no country is left behind in future health crises. A key next step will be consultations on access to pathogen and benefit-sharing, which seeks to guarantee equitable sharing of medical countermeasures derived from pathogens. Boost for WHO budget Another major outcome was the approval of a 20 per cent increase in assessed contributions – the core, mandatory funding from Member States that underpins WHO's work. By 2030-2031, these contributions will cover 50 per cent of the agency's core budget, a crucial step toward financial sustainability. Health leaders also pledged at least $210 million to WHO's ongoing Investment Round, adding to the $1.7 billion already raised and expanding the agency's donor base. A healthier world The Assembly also delivered a sweeping slate of resolutions addressing a wide range of health challenges. For the first time, nations adopted global resolutions on lung and kidney health, aligning with the growing recognition of noncommunicable diseases as a global priority. Countries also set an ambitious new target to halve the health impacts of air pollution by 2040 and in an innovative move, adopted a resolution on social connection, acknowledging mounting evidence linking social isolation to poor health outcomes. They also endorsed measures to combat the digital marketing of formula milk and baby foods, and addressed rare diseases, a lead-free future and the eradication of Guinea worm disease. History is made In conclusion, Director-General Tedros urged countries to continue the momentum beyond the Assembly, highlighting the spirit of cooperation and commitment to health for all. ' You, the nations of the world, made history,' he said. 'Yes, there is conflict in our world, but you have shown that there is also cooperation. Yes, there is inequity, but you have shown a commitment to equity. Yes, there is disease, but you have shown a commitment to health – health for all.'
Epoch Times
25-05-2025
- Health
- Epoch Times
‘Not a Matter of If, but When': Australia Signs up to WHO Pandemic Agreement
Australia has backed the World Health Organisation's (WHO) global pandemic agreement, as the United States was a no-show at the assembly. The United States elected not to participate in the WHO's first-ever international agreement and will not be bound to it in the event of a future pandemic. However, the Australian government said the WHO agreement takes into account 'lessons learnt during the COVID-19 pandemic' and supports 'collective action' to address pandemic threats. This includes increasing disease surveillance and vaccine access. Health Minister Mark Butler and Foreign Minister Penny Wong both called the adoption of the WHO agreement a 'significant step' towards preparing and responding to future pandemics. Wong said international cooperation on health was needed to keep Australia and the world safe. 'The adoption of the WHO Pandemic Agreement demonstrates the value of the international community working together to find solutions to shared global challenges,' she Related Stories 4/16/2025 5/30/2024 Butler added, 'The next pandemic is not a matter of if, but when. We have a collective responsibility to protect public health in all of our countries. The adoption of the WHO Pandemic Agreement is an important step forward.' However, Liberal Senator Alex Antic raised concerns the pandemic agreement would transfer decision making responsibility away from local decision makers into the hands of 'unaccountable globalist bureaucrats.' In an email to supporters on May 23, Antic also expressed concerns about the agreement's influence on decisions made by sovereign nations during health emergencies and called for Australia to withdraw from the WHO. 'This is particularly concerning given that the preamble to the pandemic agreement purports to recognise 'the importance and public health impact of growing threats such as climate change. Will sovereign nations simply follow WHO recommendations if a 'climate emergency' is declared?' he said. 'I f Australia is to remain the author of its own future, we must withdraw from the WHO." The Albanese government, however, said Australia would 'Once the agreement has entered into force, Australia and our region will be better positioned to reduce pandemic risks and respond swiftly if a pandemic occurs, saving lives and mitigating the impacts on our economies,' Butler said. The federal government said Australia would only start its 'treaty-making process' after the agreement opens for signature from mid-2026. 'While the agreement has been adopted by the World Health Assembly, there are further steps remaining to finalise technical details,' the government said. What's in the WHO Pandemic Agreement? The WHO Pandemic agreement was adopted with The document A key feature of the pandemic agreement is the WHO Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing System (PABS). If a new virus or pathogen with 'pandemic potential' appears, countries that are a part of this pandemic agreement will be required to share genetic sequence data with the WHO. This is aimed at developing quick development of therapeutics and vaccines. Further, pharmaceutical companies will need to provide 20 percent of vaccines they develop using this data to the WHO during a future pandemic. This includes 10 percent sold at lower prices and 10 percent donated to the WHO for distribution to poorer countries. 'Each participating manufacturer shall make available to the WHO, pursuant to legally binding contracts signed with the WHO, rapid access targeting 20 percent of their real time production of safe, quality and effective vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics for the pathogen causing the pandemic emergency,' the agreement said. The agreement states that the WHO does not have the power to enforce lockdowns, travel bans, or impose vaccine mandates. It also states that parties to the agreement recognise, 'growing threats such as climate change, poverty and hunger, fragile and vulnerable settings, weak primary healthcare and the spread of antimicrobial resistance.'
Kuwait Times
22-05-2025
- Health
- Kuwait Times
After quitting WHO, US urges others to ‘consider joining us'
As WHO adopts pandemic accord, chief says all theories on table as to how COVID spread began GENEVA: The UN health agency on Tuesday adopted a landmark Pandemic Agreement on tackling future health crises, struck after more than three years of negotiations sparked by the COVID-19 crisis. The accord aims to prevent the disjointed response and international disarray that surrounded the COVID-19 pandemic, by improving global coordination and surveillance, and access to vaccines, in any future pandemics. The World Health Organization's decision-making annual assembly adopted the plan on Tuesday at its Geneva headquarters. 'It's an historic day,' WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told AFP after the vote. US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr on Tuesday branded the World Health Organization bloated and moribund, and urged other countries to 'consider joining us' in creating new institutions instead. In a video message to the World Health Assembly — the WHO's decision-making body — Kennedy said the UN agency was under undue influence from China, gender ideology and the pharmaceutical industry. Kennedy's comments were broadcast hours after WHO adopted the pandemic accord, the text of which was finalized by consensus last month, following multiple rounds of tense negotiations. The United States pulled out of those talks, following US President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw his country from the WHO, a process that takes one year to complete. 'The world is safer today thanks to the leadership, collaboration and commitment of our member states to adopt the historic WHO Pandemic Agreement,' Tedros said in a statement. 'The agreement is a victory for public health, science and multilateral action. It will ensure we, collectively, can better protect the world from future pandemic threats. 'It is also a recognition by the international community that our citizens, societies and economies must not be left vulnerable to again suffer losses like those endured during COVID-19.' 'Political interference' The United States has traditionally been the WHO's largest donor. Washington's departure, and its refusal to pay its membership fees for 2024 and 2025, has left it reeling financially. 'The WHO has become mired in bureaucratic bloat, entrenched paradigms, conflicts of interest and international power politics,' Kennedy said in a message to the assembly. 'I urge the world's health ministers and the WHO to take our withdrawal from the organization as a wake-up call. 'We've already been in contact with like-minded countries and we encourage others to consider joining us.' Kennedy, a noted vaccine sceptic, said the United States wanted to free international health cooperation 'from the straight-jacket of political interference by corrupting influences'. 'We don't have to suffer the limits of a moribund WHO. Let's create new institutions or revisit existing institutions that are lean, efficient, transparent and accountable,' he said. Kennedy also said that too often the WHO's priorities had 'increasingly reflected the biases and the interests of corporate medicine'. 'Too often it has allowed political agendas like pushing harmful gender ideology to hijack its core mission,' he added. 'Undue influence' from China Kennedy said while the United States had been the WHO's top donor, China had 'exerted undue influence' to serve its own interests. He said the WHO had suppressed reports of human-to-human transmission of COVID, then 'worked with China to promote the fiction that COVID originated from bats or pangolins rather than from Chinese government-sponsored research at a biolab in Wuhan'. Trump's administration has embraced the so-called lab leak theory. Kennedy said global cooperation on health was still critically important to him and to Trump. 'But it isn't working very well under the WHO, as the failures of the COVID era demonstrate,' he said. Kennedy said the WHO Pandemic Agreement, adopted Tuesday by the assembly, 'will lock in all of the dysfunctions of the WHO pandemic response. We're not going to participate in that. We need to reboot the whole system.' A March 2021 WHO-Chinese joint report into COVID's origins said the most likely hypothesis was that the virus jumped from bats to humans via an intermediate animal. But little further progress has been made. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has long said all theories remain on the table as to how the COVID-19 pandemic began. In his speech to the assembly on Tuesday, Tedros said: 'The pandemic has ended, but we still don't know how it started.' 'Understanding how it did remains important, both as a scientific imperative and as a moral imperative', for the sake of the millions killed. Chinese Vice Premier Liu Guozhong told the assembly that Beijing had been 'responsible and constructive on the matters of COVID' and 'any attempts to smear China ... will prove futile'. — Agencies
