World Health Organisation (WHO) member states have finalised a draft global pandemic agreement to be submitted to the World Health Assembly in May for adoption. The WHO announced the consensus after more than three years of intensive negotiations to improve how the world prepares for and responds to future health threats.
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“In reaching consensus on the Pandemic Agreement, not only did they put in place a generational accord to make the world safer,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus. “They have also demonstrated that multilateralism is alive and well and that in our divided world, nations can still work together to find common ground and a shared response to shared threats.”
The negotiations, which began in December 2021 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, culminated in an agreement after 13 formal rounds of talks, with the final session extending overnight. The process was managed through an Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) established by WHO member states.
Key elements of the draft agreement include a commitment to a “One Health” approach to pandemic prevention, strengthened national health systems, and the establishment of a coordinated financial mechanism. The agreement also calls for creating a globally coordinated supply chain network for health emergencies and a new pathogen access and benefit-sharing system.
Notably, the text explicitly affirms national sovereignty in public health decisions, stating that nothing in the agreement gives the WHO authority to mandate health measures such as lockdowns, vaccination campaigns, or border closures.
“This monumental effort has been sustained by the shared understanding that viruses do not respect borders – that no one is safe from pandemics until everyone is safe,” the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) Co-Chair Precious Matsoso of South Africa said and called the outcome a breakthrough for health equity.
The draft will be considered at the 78th World Health Assembly beginning May 19. If adopted, it will be subject to ratification by individual nations. According to media reports, the United States did not participate in the final negotiation round following its January announcement to withdraw from the global health body and would not be bound by the agreement.
The consensus comes in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which claimed nearly seven million lives worldwide, exposed critical vulnerabilities in global health systems, and highlighted stark inequalities in access to diagnostics, treatments, and vaccines.
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