WHO Chief Calls for Quick End to Global Pandemic Treaty Negotiations

Deadly disease outbreaks like the ongoing Ebola epidemic show the urgent need to finish an international pandemic treaty, the World Health Organization chief said Monday. Wealthy nations and developing countries still disagree on how the agreement will work in practice.

The Final Hurdle

As the ninth meeting to finalise the deal opened in Geneva, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged countries to finish the job. He pointed to recent health threats, including an April hantavirus outbreak that killed three people on a cruise ship and an Ebola epidemic declared in May. That Ebola outbreak has killed nearly 5,000 people out of more than 10,000 infected, mostly in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Tedros reminded world leaders of the main lesson from Covid-19: no single country can protect itself by acting alone.

PABS System

When countries agreed to a framework in May, they left out the hard part about how the key mechanism will operate. The Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing system covers how nations share access to dangerous pathogens and the vaccines, tests, and treatments made from them. Tedros called this system the last remaining piece of the puzzle. During the Covid-19 pandemic, unequal access left many countries waiting for vaccines while wealthier places hoarded more than they needed, which cost lives and prolonged the crisis.

Context

Global health bodies push for binding international treaties to ensure that life-saving medical supplies are shared fairly during future health emergencies. Without a formal global agreement, poorer nations often struggle to access tests and treatments quickly during fast-moving outbreaks.