World leaders struggle to draft first international pandemic agreement: summary

What we know

• World leaders have been engaged in a complex and challenging process to draft the world's first international pandemic agreement. The agreement, spearheaded by the World Health Organisation (WHO), aims to establish a global framework for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response.
• Despite the urgency and shared experience of the pandemic's devastation, reaching a consensus on the agreement's terms has proven difficult. Negotiations aimed at finalising the agreement from 29 April to 10 May 2024 proved futile.
• However, on Friday, May 10, governments worldwide agreed to persevere in their efforts towards a proposed pandemic agreement. The focus is on refining the draft in preparation for the Seventy-seventh World Health Assembly scheduled to commence on May 27, 2024.
• The discussions are centred around critical subjects such as adequate financing for pandemic preparedness, equitable access to medical countermeasures, and health workforce strengthening.

What they said

WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasised the agreement's significance by stating that "Our Member States are fully aware of how important the pandemic agreement is for protecting future generations from the suffering we endured through the COVID-19 pandemic. I thank them for their clear commitment to finding common ground and finalising this historic agreement in time for the World Health Assembly." Dr Precious Matsoso, Co-Chair of the INB Bureau, also expressed the collective goal, "There is clear recognition from governments that the goal of a pandemic agreement is to prepare the world for preventing and responding to future pandemics, built on consensus, solidarity, and equity. These goals must remain our North Star as we move toward the finalisation of this historic, pressing commitment for the world."