Tedros Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO) has urged member states to finalise the pathogen access and benefit-sharing annex, warning that global preparedness for future pandemics remained inadequate without immediate agreement.
Speaking on Saturday at the 79th World Health Assembly, Mr Ghebreyesus said, “Without the PABS annex, the world is not truly ready for the next pandemic,” citing Ebola and hantavirus outbreaks.
He said the week-long assembly adopted resolutions on diagnostic imaging, emergency care, haemophilia, neglected tropical diseases, precision medicine, radiation, stroke, transplantation and tuberculosis, alongside reforms targeting the global health architecture system.
Mr Ghebreyesus thanked Assembly President Dr Victor Atallah and committee chairs Dr Timur Sultangaziyev and Ghana’s Health Minister Mintah Akandoh for guiding deliberations covering technical, political and administrative matters throughout the gathering.
He said the assembly demonstrated progress in spite of outbreaks, conflict, uncertainty and limited resources, emphasising that resolutions only mattered when they improved clinics, protected communities, strengthened households, and enabled detection of outbreaks.
Describing the 2025 pandemic agreement as a “monumental achievement,” Mr Ghebreyesus urged member states to approve increased assessed contributions, saying predictable funding would ensure WHO remained “able, stable and sustainable” during emergencies.
Rejecting suggestions of institutional decline, Mr Ghebreyesus declared, “This is not an organisation in crisis,” adding that the WHO was instead moving forward confidently, with purpose, and improving its ability to respond worldwide.
(NAN)
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