Global Efforts to Strengthen Pandemic Prevention and Response: Key Points of the WHO Agreement

The World Health Organization (WHO) is preparing to introduce a comprehensive Pandemic Agreement aimed at learning from the shortcomings experienced during the COVID-19 crisis. This agreement, set for submission at the upcoming World Health Assembly, emerges after more than three years of negotiations involving its 194 member states. The core aim is to bolster global capacity for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response, emphasizing principles of equity, solidarity, and transparency.

The agreement underscores that public health decisions should be grounded in the best available scientific evidence, while simultaneously respecting the sovereignty of individual nations. Among its main provisions, countries are encouraged to strengthen their surveillance and prevention infrastructure. This includes developing national pandemic preparedness plans, enhancing early detection systems, managing biological risks in laboratories, preventing antimicrobial resistance, and controlling zoonotic disease transmission.

A significant focus is on fostering sustainable, equitable access to pandemic-related health products like vaccines through more geographically diverse production and rapid scale-up capabilities. The agreement advocates for measures to reduce supply-demand gaps during emergencies.

Technology transfer remains a contentious issue, with the agreement promoting voluntary, mutually agreed transfers of production know-how, rather than mandatory sharing. It also introduces the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing System (PABS), facilitating rapid pathogen data sharing among countries and pharmaceutical companies, while ensuring equitable distribution of resulting health products, including commitments to donate a portion of production.

Furthermore, a Global Supply Chain and Logistics Network will be established to ensure efficient and fair distribution of essential health products during pandemics. The agreement still requires detailed negotiations, particularly regarding the mechanisms of technology transfer and PABS, with a target for ratification after reaching 60 participating countries.

Overall, this agreement aims to build a more resilient global health infrastructure capable of responding swiftly and equitably to future pandemics, fostering international cooperation and accountability.

Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-05-pandemic-agreement-key.html