WHO completes new pandemic agreement draft

Efforts to draft the world’s first agreement designed to boost global preparedness against future pandemics has progressed significantly following the latest round of discussions, according to the WHO.

The global health agency reported that there has been greater involvement of “civil society and non-state actors” in producing the latest draft agreement.

The draft was written during the 11^th meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB), held from 9–20 September in Geneva, Switzerland, and attended by all 194 WHO member governments.

The latest version of the draft “reflects the latest government proposals, and offers suggestions” for improvement.

Three years of ongoing negotiations

Negotiators will resume discussions at the 12^th round, between 4–15 November, continuing almost three years of work so far.

The INB was established by a special session of the World Health Assembly in December 2021, with the aim of creating a convention, agreement, or other international instrument under the WHO to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. The body hopes to complete negotiations by June 2025.

“The next pandemic will not wait for us, whether from a flu virus like H5N1, another coronavirus, or another family of viruses we don’t yet know about,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director-General. “But all the ingredients are in place to meet the objective of countries to negotiate a generational pandemic agreement. The world needs hope that it is still possible for countries to find common solutions to common problems. You can provide that hope.”

A balance between collaboration and national sovereignty

Precious Matsoso, INB Co-Chair from South Africa added that there was progress on fundamental areas of the draft agreement, including on research and development, regulatory systems strengthening, the One Health approach, pandemic prevention and technology, supply chain networks and a new system for increased access to pathogens of pandemic potential and sharing of benefits, such as vaccines, diagnostics and treatments.

“Following nearly three years of negotiations, countries are now focused on the remaining and most critical elements of the draft agreement to protect the world from future pandemics,” she explained. “At the heart of the negotiations is recognition that collaboration among countries will ensure the world will not be left vulnerable in the face of future pandemics, while each and every country will maintain their sovereignty and control over national health decision-making.”

The WHO declared a recent outbreak of mpox a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) earlier this year.