#WHO DG's remarks at High-Level Virtual #Meeting of African Heads of State and Government and Partners on #Bundibugyo #Ebola #outbreak – 16 June 2026

 

Your Excellencies President Ndayishimiye,

President Ramaphosa,

Vice President Alupo,

Prime Minister Suminwa Tuluka,

Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf,

Dr Jean Kaseya,

Excellencies, honourable Ministers, dear colleagues and friends,

    I thank the Africa CDC for hosting this event, and for its partnership in the Ebola response through the joint, African-led incident management support team.

    Thank you also to all those who have made concrete commitments today to support the Joint Continental Preparedness and Response Plan, especially the Government of DRC and Uganda.

    Two weeks ago I traveled to DRC, and I visited the epicentre of the outbreak in the province of Ituri.

    I saw resilience, I saw commitment and I saw hope.

    Treatment capacity is expanding, and we are seeing recoveries.

    But I also saw first-hand the challenges that the communities and our teams face.

    Testing and laboratory capacity are still not at the level we need to interrupt transmission.

    Insecurity, displacement and population movement complicate these efforts – as does significant mistrust in local communities, which I observed while I was in Bunia.

    And blanket travel restrictions are disrupting supply chains and hindering response operations, without addressing the source of transmission.

    As you may know, this month marks 50 years since the first documented Ebola outbreaks in Sudan and DRC, in 1976 – although the first documented outbreak of Bundibugyo virus was only 19 years ago, in 2007.

    In that time, there have only ever been four cases of Ebola documented in travelers from Africa, excluding medical evacuations.

    Blanket travel restrictions are an unnecessary overreaction that do more harm than good.

    WHO recommends targeted public health measures, including exit screening at points of departure, which are much more effective.

    As you know, we are fighting this outbreak without vaccines or therapeutics.

    Clinical trials of promising medicines for treatment and prevention will start in the coming weeks. Vaccine trials will take longer.

    We are also working to ensure access for the affected communities to medicines and vaccines should they be successful in trials.

    Of course, medical countermeasures would be very useful.

    But under the leadership of the government, we can defeat this outbreak without them, just as we have defeated 16 previous Ebola outbreaks in DRC.

    The bigger question is what we will do to prevent the 18th Ebola outbreak, and the 19th.

    That must include working with communities to address the root causes of Ebola outbreaks by improving food safety and preventing spillover, as part of a One Health approach.

    At the same time, we must remember that for the people of Ituri, Ebola is just one threat among many.

    During my visit, one health worker came up to me and asked why we came for Ebola, but not for the many other health threats they face.

    He has a point.

    Community mistrust is a major barrier in this outbreak because these communities feel – perhaps rightly – that the outside world only wants to protect itself from Ebola and doesn’t truly care about them.

    We have a duty to end this outbreak. But our duty does not end there.

    Even as we respond to this outbreak, we must ensure that we are strengthening the essential health services and systems that people rely on for their many other health needs.

    That’s the best way to build trust, and to keep it.

    If we protect these communities from Ebola, but not from malaria or unsafe childbirth, or measles or malnutrition, or from a conflict that is not of their making, we have not really helped.

    Excellencies, as we conclude today’s meeting, I have heard seven main priorities:

    First, the response must be African-led, with the affected countries in the driver’s seat, supported by partners based on the principle of one plan, one budget, one team.

    Second, today’s Summit has endorsed the continued collaboration between WHO and Africa CDC, under the joint Incident Management Support Team and the Joint Continental Preparedness and Response Plan.

    Third, even while we invest in fighting Ebola, we must invest in strengthening essential health systems and services, and in addressing the wider humanitarian emergency.

    Fourth, we continue to call for countries that have imposed blanket travel restrictions to lift them – as I said earlier, because this is overreaction.

    Fifth, we must continue building national and regional capacity to produce vaccines, therapeutics and other medical products.

    Sixth, we ask the armed groups to agree to a ceasefire until the outbreak is over.

    This Summit has called for the urgent establishment of humanitarian access corridors to ensure safe access for authorities and partners to North Kivu, South Kivu and other high-risk areas.

    And seventh, even as we work to stop this outbreak, we must start work now to prevent the next one, by addressing the root causes.

    This Summit has emphasized the need to move from emergency appeals to sustainable preparedness financing, anchored in domestic governments and the African private sector, and complemented by external partners.

    None of this is the responsibility of DRC alone. We are all in this together.

    In particular, strong cross-border cooperation between affected countries and their neighbours is especially important.

    The keys to ending this outbreak are government leadership, community ownership, and strong partnership between WHO, Africa CDC and the many other actors on the ground.

    Thank you all once again for your support. Together, we can stop this.

    And to Your Excellency President Ndayishimiye and President Ramaphosa, we really appreciate your leadership. 

Source: 

Link: https://www.who.int/news-room/speeches/item/who-director-general-s-remarks-at-the-high-level-virtual-meeting-of-african-heads-of-state-and-government-and-partners-on-the-ebola-bundibugyo-virus-disease-outbreak---16-june-2026

____

Twenty-one #countries launch coordinated #Andes virus #research initiative following #hantavirus #outbreak (WHO, June 12 '26)

 

    Following the recent Andes virus (ANDV) outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship, a globally coordinated outbreak research initiative involving investigators and institutions across 21 countries has begun implementation,  demonstrating how international research preparedness systems can be rapidly activated during health emergencies.

    The initiative, known as NAVIS, is a natural history study designed to improve understanding of ANDV transmission dynamics, incubation periods, immune responses, viral kinetics, and determinants of severe disease through harmonized longitudinal follow-up of exposed individuals.

    The study will use a harmonized prospective protocol, which was developed by Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Spain, for immediate deployment after an emergency scientific consultation coordinated through the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA)-led Hantavirus Collaborative Open Research Consortium (CORC) mobilized more than 1600 experts from over 130 countries to identify urgent scientific priorities and coordinate international research activities.

    “Closing gaps in our scientific knowledge is key to the development of medical countermeasures, and through international coordination we ensure this is accelerated. Preparedness, therefore, must include the ability to rapidly generate scientific evidence during outbreaks, not only respond to them,” said Yper Hall of the UKHSA.

    By using standardized approaches across countries, NAVIS aims to generate comparable datasets to better understand the pathogen and inform the development of medical countermeasures like tests, treatments and vaccines.

    Coordination of the NAVIS platform is being supported by ANRS Emerging Infectious Diseases (ANRS-MIE) under BE READY, a EU-funded global initiative to strengthen research preparedness and rapid scientific mobilization for future epidemics and pandemics. The study will use ISARIC (International Severe Acute Respiratory and Emerging Infection Consortium), an adaptable research framework designed to enable rapid, standardized data and sample collection during emerging infectious disease outbreaks.

    Participating countries include: 

    ° Australia, 

    ° Belgium, 

    ° Canada, 

    ° Democratic Republic of the Congo, 

    ° Denmark, 

    ° France, 

    ° Germany, 

    ° Greece, 

    ° Ireland, 

    ° Italy, 

    ° Japan, 

    ° the Netherlands, 

    ° New Zealand, 

    ° Singapore, 

    ° South Africa, 

    ° Spain, 

    ° Switzerland, 

    ° Türkiye, 

    ° the United Kingdom and 

    ° the United States.

    Participating institutions include leading infectious disease, clinical research, and public health centres such as the Australian Centre for Disease Control, Sinai Health System, Institut National de la Recherche Médicale (Inserm), Hellenic Pasteur Institute, University College Dublin, National Centre for Infectious Diseases, University Hospital Zurich, University of Liverpool, and Emory University, among others.

    “The rapid launch of NAVIS across 21 countries shows what is possible when research networks are established before outbreaks occur,” commented Yazdan Yazdanpanah of ANRS-MIE.

    NAVIS represents a practical example of outbreak research preparedness under the World Health Organization’s R&D Blueprint, which establishes research networks for pathogen families, to support rapid scientific coordination and implementation of outbreak research before emergencies emerge.

    Outbreaks such as that of the ANDV present rare opportunities for scientific investigation, with a limited window of time for generating robust evidence. Without rapid coordination and harmonized protocols, opportunities to better understand the pathogen can be lost.

    “Scientific evidence generation during outbreaks must become operational, coordinated, and immediately deployable. Future outbreak responses should begin by activating research systems that already exist rather than trying to build them during crises,” said Sylvie Briand, Chief Scientist at WHO.

    The initiative also highlights the importance of geographically-distributed research preparedness. Countries and regions where outbreaks emerge or pathogens circulate must be central participants in evidence generation through strengthened clinical trial networks, national ethics committees, laboratory systems, surveillance platforms, and outbreak research infrastructure.

    The ANDV outbreak demonstrated the importance of research preparedness. Future outbreak responses should no longer begin by building research systems during crises. They should begin by activating systems that already exist.

Source: 

Link: https://www.who.int/news/item/12-06-2026-twenty-one-countries-launch-coordinated-andes-virus-research-initiative-following-hantavirus-outbreak

____

#WHO DG's opening #remarks at launch of joint #Bundibugyo #Ebola virus continental strategic #preparedness and #response plan – 5 June 2026 (edited)

 

    Dr Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa CDC,

    Dr Mohamed Yakub Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa,

    Dear colleagues, partners and friends from the media,

    Good morning, good afternoon and good evening, and thank you for joining us.

    Earlier this week, I returned from DRC, where I travelled to the epicentre of the Ebola outbreak in the province of Ituri.

    I saw and heard first-hand the challenges that the communities are facing, and that the government and partners are facing, as we race to control this outbreak as quickly as possible.

    The outbreak is moving fast, and we are still playing catch-up.

    But my trip to the DRC also gave me real hope that together, under the government’s leadership, we can bring this outbreak under control.

    The only way we will do that is through government leadership, community ownership and close partnership between the many actors on the ground.

    Today, WHO and Africa CDC are expressing that partnership by launching a joint continental preparedness and response plan.

    The objective is straightforward: we need to stop the outbreak where it is, support countries that are responding today, and ensure that neighbouring countries are ready to detect and act quickly if cases appear.

    There are several important features of this plan.

    First, it’s a shared plan. The only way to beat this outbreak is through close partnership, working together under the leadership of the affected countries in one coordinated effort, guided by a simple principle: one plan, one budget, one team.

    Second, this is a practical plan. It sets out what we need to do now, together, to contain the current outbreak and reduce the risk of further spread.

    Third, it’s a time-bound plan, covering June to November this year.

    And fourth, it’s a costed plan, at US$ 518 million.

    That figure represents the combined effort of WHO, Africa CDC and key partners including UNICEF, UNHCR, WFP, the IFRC and FIND.

    Africa CDC and WHO are also establishing a joint financial tracking mechanism to monitor funding needs, commitments and gaps.

    The plan focuses on core areas: emergency coordination, surveillance, laboratory testing, infection prevention and control, clinical care, and community engagement.

    It also provides for research, logistics, and the continuity of essential health services, which are often disrupted during outbreaks.

    Experience shows that success depends on how well these elements function together.

    Surveillance must lead quickly to testing. Testing must trigger isolation and care;

    Infection prevention must protect health workers and patients;

    And community engagement must be continuous, grounded in trust, and responsive to concerns.

    This plan builds directly on national response plans in the DRC and Uganda, where authorities are intensifying efforts to bring the outbreak under control.

    It also supports preparedness in neighbouring countries, where cross-border movement creates ongoing risk.

    WHO is engaged at all three levels to support the response.

    But technical work alone is not enough. Containing Ebola depends on political commitment, sustained financing, and the trust and engagement of communities.

    This plan places communities at the centre, because without their participation, contact tracing falters, safe care is delayed, and transmission continues.

    Misinformation is almost as dangerous as the virus itself, and spreads just as fast.

    Earning and keeping the trust of communities is at the heart of everything we do.

    We are not starting from zero. This plan draws on lessons from previous Ebola outbreaks and recent health emergencies.

    Those lessons are clear: speed matters, coordination matters, and consistency matters.

    The opportunity now is to act with clarity and discipline, using a common plan to guide a common effort.

    If we do that, we can bring this outbreak to an end and strengthen the systems that protect people from the next one.

    This is a serious outbreak and it’s one we know how to stop but we need to move fast and together.

    No country faces this alone.

    As I said earlier, the key to this plan is partnership, especially between the Africa CDC and WHO.

    I’m therefore pleased to invite the Director-General of the Africa CDC, Dr Jean Kaseya, to say a few words.

    Jean, over to you.

Source: 

Link: https://www.who.int/news-room/speeches/item/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-at-the-launch-of-joint-bundibugyo-ebola-virus-continental-strategic-preparedness-and-response-plan-5-june-2026

____

#Africa #CDC and #WHO launch joint #continental #Ebola #response plan (June 5 '26)

 

    The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) today launched a joint continental preparedness and response plan on the ongoing Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus. 

    The plan aims to raise US$ 518 million to support African countries together with partners to prepare for, rapidly detect and respond to the outbreak.

    The six-month plan, covering June to November 2026, brings together governments, partners and communities under a unified ‘One Response’ approach to strengthen outbreak response measures, including emergency coordination, disease surveillance, laboratory testing, infection prevention and control, clinical care, community engagement, research, logistics and support for essential health services.

    The plan complements national response plans launched by the Governments of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda.

    “The only way to beat this outbreak is through close partnership, working together under the leadership of the affected countries in one coordinated effort, guided by a simple principle: one plan, one budget, one team,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. 

    “Containing Ebola depends on political commitment, sustained financing, and the trust and engagement of communities. This plan places communities at the centre, because without their participation, contact tracing falters, safe care is delayed, and transmission continues.”

    Dr Jean Kaseya, Director-General of Africa CDC, said: “Ebola moves fast. Africa must move faster. This joint plan gives the continent a clear path to act with speed and unity: to save lives, support the affected countries and protect neighbouring communities. With Member States, WHO and partners, Africa CDC is turning commitment into action and resources into response for the communities at risk.”

    The plan also focuses on protecting vulnerable populations, strengthening cross-border collaboration, and supporting countries to respond quickly to new cases. At a time when there are no licensed vaccines or therapeutics specifically approved for the Bundibugyo species of Ebola, the plan aims to strengthen health systems to ensure resilience even as countries respond to acute health emergencies.

    Implementation of preparedness and response activities is already underway across affected and at-risk countries. Furthermore, in 10 priority countries critical measures are being strengthened to enhance public health emergency preparedness and ensure early detection and swift response.

    The plan emphasizes the need to maintain support for other ongoing health emergencies, including mpox, cholera and measles, to prevent disruptions to critical response efforts and safeguard progress towards stronger, more resilient health systems.

    This coordinated effort comes as response operations accelerate in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where authorities, with support from Africa CDC, WHO and partners, are ramping up efforts to curb the spread of the virus and end the outbreak.

    Africa CDC and WHO urge Member States to strengthen screening and public health measures at points of entry and enhance cross-border coordination and solidarity to support a timely, effective and evidence-based response to the outbreak.

    Through the joint preparedness and response plan, the continent is mobilising its collective expertise and resources to reinforce response measures, acting as one to control the outbreak and protect communities across the region. Its successful implementation will require strong political commitment, sustained investment and close collaboration among governments, health workers, communities and partners.

    Drawing on lessons learned from previous Ebola outbreaks and recent public health emergencies, the plan also provides a pathway to broadly strengthen Africa’s capacity to prevent, detect and respond to future health threats while protecting lives and livelihoods.

(...)

Source: 

Link: https://www.who.int/news/item/05-06-2026-africa-cdc-and-who-launch-joint-continental-ebola-response-plan

____

Joint #statement by Government of #DRC and #WHO concerning #outbreak of #Ebola disease caused by the #Bundibugyo virus (June 1 '26)

 

    The Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) reaffirm their strong partnership and shared commitment to protect the health and well-being of the people of Ituri Province and the nation at large, following the joint mission to Bunia led by Dr Samuel Roger Kamba, Minister of Health, Mr. Patrick Muyaya Katembwe, Minister of Communication and Medias, and the visit of WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

    This high-level visit comes at a challenging time, as the country responds to an outbreak of Ebola disease caused by the Bundibugyo virus. 

    The Ministry of Health reports a rapidly evolving situation, with cases and deaths notified in several health zones of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu. 

    The Government, with support from WHO and partners, is intensifying surveillance, laboratory testing and patient care to interrupt transmission as quickly as possible

    The Government of the DRC is firmly leading a comprehensive national response, working closely with provincial authorities in Ituri and neighbouring provinces. 

    WHO, alongside the broader United Nations system and health and humanitarian partners, is fully committed to supporting these efforts. 

    Together, DRC authorities, WHO and partners are working to strengthen coordination, mobilize additional resources, and ensure that life-saving interventions reach affected communities quickly and equitably

    Central to this response is the recognition that communities are at the heart of the solution. Success will depend on the trust, engagement and leadership of local communities. National and provincial authorities, with support from WHO and partners, are intensifying dialogue with community leaders, women's groups, youth representatives, religious leaders and the private sector to better understand local concerns and co-develop solutions that are culturally appropriate and effective.

    While the Bundibugyo strain presents additional challenges, including the absence of a licensed vaccine or specific treatment, proven public health measures remain effective in slowing transmission and potential full recovery. 

    The Ministry of Health, WHO and partners are working to rapidly undertake randomized control trials on candidate vaccines and treatments.

    Persistent challenges include early detection and isolation of cases, contact tracing, safe and dignified burials, robust infection prevention and control in health facilities, and strong community awareness. 

    The Government and WHO call on all communities to continue adopting protective behaviours, including regular hand hygiene, early care seeking in health facilities, and sharing accurate information.

    The DRC brings unparalleled experience to this response, having successfully contained multiple previous Ebola outbreaks. This experience, combined with strong political leadership at the highest level of the State and renewed international solidarity, provides a firm foundation for bringing the current outbreak under control.

    Both parties emphasize that outbreak response must maintain primary health care and essential services and strengthen long-term health system resilience. Investments made today in laboratories, health workers, surveillance systems and essential services will leave a legacy for the people of Ituri and the DRC as a whole.

    We sincerely thank our international partners for the support already provided to response operations, and we encourage sustained solidarity to bring this outbreak under control. Cooperation between countries must also ensure that borders remain open, and that entry controls do not obstruct the flow of desperately needed medical supplies and personnel.

    Together, DRC authorities, WHO, Africa CDC and partners are working to strengthen coordination, mobilize additional resources, and ensure that life-saving interventions reach affected communities quickly and equitably.

Source: 

Link: https://www.who.int/news/item/31-05-2026-joint-statement-by-the-government-of-the-democratic-republic-of-the-congo-and-who-concerning-the-outbreak-of-ebola-disease-caused-by-the-bundibugyo-virus

____

#Outbreak at #Sea: The MV Hondius #Hantavirus #Cluster as a Sentinel for Global #Pandemic Readiness

 

{Summary}

The South Atlantic promises crystalline isolation. But the Dutch-flagged MV Hondius—an expedition vessel carrying 147 passengers and crew from 23 nations—harbored something else entirely between the Southern Cone and Antarctica [1, 2]. An invisible passenger. Epidemiologists trace this outbreak directly to dry land, theorizing the index case inhaled aerosolized rodent excreta during a Southern Cone bird-watching excursion [1].

(...)

Source: 

Link: https://www.ijidonline.com/article/S1201-9712(26)00473-X/fulltext

____

Connecting the #region during #crisis: a Community of Practice #response to the MV Hondius #hantavirus #outbreak

 

Abstract

This article describes the rapid activation of the Asia Pacific Health Security Action Framework Community of Practice following the MV Hondius hantavirus outbreak. It highlights regional knowledge-sharing, multidisciplinary engagement, preparedness activities, and the importance of timely communication and collaboration in strengthening readiness and response during emerging public health emergencies.

Source: 

Link: https://ojs.wpro.who.int/ojs/index.php/wpsar/article/view/1488

____

DREF #Operation: #Ethiopia #Marburg #Outbreak 2025 (MDRET039) (IFRC, Dec. 1 '25)

 

Description of the Event

Date when the trigger was met: 12-11-2025

What happened, where and when?

-- On 14 November 2025, the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH), in collaboration with the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), issued a press release declaring an outbreak of Marburg virus disease in the South Region of Ethiopia. 

-- As of 26 November 2025, 78 laboratory tests have been conducted, of which twelve confirmed cases, including seven confirmed deaths, have been reported, three cases remain probable. 

-- Of the twelve confirmed cases, five are currently alive, three on treatment, and two discharged. 

-- More than 300 contacts have been identified and are under active follow-up. 

-- Given the high fatality potential and rapid transmissibility of Marburg, (MVD) an immediate and coordinated public health response is essential. 

- Early detection, isolation, contact tracing, and community sensitization are critical to prevent further spread by strengthening infection prevention and control (IPC) in health facilities, ensuring the safety of health workers, mobilizing rapid response teams (RRTs), and effective risk communication are key priorities at this stage.

-- An urgent response is warranted due to the potential for rapid local and cross-regional transmission, and significant public health threat associated with hemorrhagic fevers. 

-- Delayed intervention could result in high morbidity and mortality, community panic and overburdening of the health system. 

-- Immediate action will help contain the outbreak source, interrupt transmission chains, and protect both the affected population and health workers while laboratory confirmation and epidemiological investigations continue.

Source: 

Link: https://reliefweb.int/report/ethiopia/dref-operation-ethiopia-marburg-outbreak-2025-mdret039

____

#WHO #operations compromised following #attacks on warehouse and #facility sheltering #staff and #families in Deir al Balah, #Gaza

 

WHO condemns in the strongest terms the attacks on a building housing WHO staff in Deir al Balah in Gaza, the mistreatment of those sheltering there, and the destruction of its main warehouse.

Following intensified hostilities in Deir al Balah after the latest evacuation order issued by Israeli military, the WHO staff residence was attacked three times today. 

Staff and their families, including children, were exposed to grave danger and traumatized after airstrikes caused a fire and significant damage. 

Israeli military entered the premises, forcing women and children to evacuate on foot toward Al-Mawasi amid active conflict. 

Male staff and family members were handcuffed, stripped, interrogated on the spot, and screened at gunpoint. 

Two WHO staff and two family members were detained. 

Three were later released, while one staff member remains in detention. 

Thirty-two people, including women and children, were collected and evacuated to the WHO office in a high-risk mission, once access became possible. 

The office itself is close to the evacuation zone and active conflict.

WHO demands continuous protection of its staff and the immediate release of the remaining detained staff member.

The latest evacuation order has affected several WHO premises. As the United Nations’s (UN) lead health agency, WHO’s operational presence in Gaza is now compromised, crippling efforts to sustain a collapsing health system and pushing survival further out of reach for more than two million people. 

Most of WHO’s staff housing is now inaccessible. Last night, due to intensified hostilities, 43 staff and their families were already relocated from several staff residences to the WHO office, under darkness and at significant risk.

WHO’s main warehouse located in Deir al Balah is within the evacuation zone, and was damaged yesterday after an attack caused explosions and fire inside - part of a pattern of systematic destruction of health facilities. It was later looted by desperate crowds.

With the main warehouse nonfunctional and the majority of medical supplies in Gaza depleted, WHO is severely constrained in adequately supporting hospitals, emergency medical teams and health partners, already critically short on medicines, fuel, and equipment. WHO urgently calls on Member States to help ensure a sustained and regular flow of medical supplies into Gaza.

The geographical coordinates of all WHO premises, including offices, warehouses, and staff housing, are shared with the relevant parties. These facilities are the backbone of WHO’s operations in Gaza and must always be protected, regardless of evacuation or displacement orders. Any threat to these premises is a threat to the entire humanitarian health response in Gaza.  

In line with the UN’s decision, WHO will remain in Deir al Balah, deliver and expand its operations.

With 88% of Gaza now under evacuation orders or within Israeli-militarized zones, there is no safe place to go.

WHO is appalled by the dangerous conditions under which humanitarians and health workers are forced to operate. As the security situation and access continue to deteriorate, red lines are repeatedly crossed, and humanitarian operations pushed into an ever-shrinking space to respond. 

WHO calls for the immediate release of the WHO staff member detained today, and the protection of all our staff and its premises. We reiterate our call for the active protection of civilians, health care and its premises and for rapid and unimpeded flow of aid, including food, fuel and health supplies, at scale into and across Gaza. WHO also calls for the unconditional release of hostages. 

Life in Gaza is being relentlessly squeezed, and the chance to prevent loss of lives and reverse immense damage to the health system slips further out of reach each day. A ceasefire is not just necessary, it is overdue. 

Source: World Health Organization, https://www.who.int/news/item/21-07-2025-who-operations-compromised-following-attacks-on-warehouse-and-facility-sheltering-staff-and-families-in-deir-al-balah

____

World #Health #Assembly adopts historic #Pandemic #Agreement to make the world more equitable and safer from future pandemics (#WHO)

Agreement’s adoption follows three years of intensive negotiation launched due to gaps and inequities identified in national and global COVID-19 response.

Agreement boosts global collaboration to ensure stronger, more equitable response to future pandemics.

Next steps include negotiations on Pathogen Access and Benefits Sharing system.

Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO) today formally adopted by consensus the world's first Pandemic Agreement. The landmark decision by the 78th World Health Assembly culminates more than three years of intensive negotiations launched by governments in response to the devastating impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and driven by the goal of making the world safer from – and more equitable in response to – future pandemics.

“The world is safer today thanks to the leadership, collaboration and commitment of our Member States to adopt the historic WHO Pandemic Agreement,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. 

“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.”  

Governments adopted the WHO Pandemic Agreement today in a plenary session of the World Health Assembly, WHO’s peak decision-making body. The adoption followed yesterday’s approval of the Agreement by vote (124 in favour, 0 objections, 11 abstentions) in Committee by Member State delegations.

“Starting during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, governments from all corners of the world acted with great purpose, dedication and urgency, and in doing so exercising their national sovereignty, to negotiate the historic WHO Pandemic Agreement that has been adopted today,” said Dr Teodoro Herbosa, Secretary of the Philippines Department of Health, and President of this year’s World Health Assembly, who presided over the Agreement’s adoption. 

“Now that the Agreement has been brought to life, we must all act with the same urgency to implement its critical elements, including systems to ensure equitable access to life-saving pandemic-related health products. As COVID was a once-in-a-lifetime emergency, the WHO Pandemic Agreement offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to build on lessons learned from that crisis and ensure people worldwide are better protected if a future pandemic emerges.”

The WHO Pandemic Agreement sets out the principles, approaches and tools for better international coordination across a range of areas, in order to strengthen the global health architecture for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. This includes through the equitable and timely access to vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics.

Regarding national sovereignty, the Agreement states that: 

“Nothing in the WHO Pandemic Agreement shall be interpreted as providing the Secretariat of the World Health Organization, including the Director-General of the World Health Organization, any authority to direct, order, alter or otherwise prescribe the national and/or domestic law, as appropriate, or policies of any Party, or to mandate or otherwise impose any requirements that Parties take specific actions, such as ban or accept travellers, impose vaccination mandates or therapeutic or diagnostic measures or implement lockdowns.”

Notes for editors

The resolution on the WHO Pandemic Agreement adopted by the World Health Assembly sets out steps to prepare for the accord’s implementation. It includes launching a process to draft and negotiate a Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing system (PABS) through an Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG). The result of this process will be considered at next year’s World Health Assembly.

Once the Assembly adopts the PABS annex, the WHO Pandemic Agreement will then be open for signature and consideration of ratification, including by national legislative bodies. 

After 60 ratifications, the Agreement will enter into force.

In addition, Member States also directed the IGWG to initiate steps to enable setting up of the Coordinating Financial Mechanism for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, and the Global Supply Chain and Logistics Network (GSCL) to “enhance, facilitate, and work to remove barriers and ensure equitable, timely, rapid, safe, and affordable access to pandemic-related health products for countries in need during public health emergencies of international concern, including pandemic emergencies, and for prevention of such emergencies.”

According to the Agreement, pharmaceutical manufacturers participating in the PABS system will play a key role in equitable and timely access to pandemic-related health products by making available to WHO “rapid access targeting 20% of their real time production of safe, quality and effective vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics for the pathogen causing the pandemic emergency.”  The distribution of these products to countries will be carried out on the basis of public health risk and need, with particular attention to the needs of developing countries.

The WHO Pandemic Agreement is the second international legal agreement negotiated under Article 19 of the WHO Constitution, the first being the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which was adopted in 2003 and entered into force in 2005.

Source: World Health Organization, https://www.who.int/news/item/20-05-2025-world-health-assembly-adopts-historic-pandemic-agreement-to-make-the-world-more-equitable-and-safer-from-future-pandemics

____