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World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized that deadly outbreaks, such as the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, underscore the urgent need to finalize an international pandemic treaty.
Speaking to reporters as the ninth round of talks to finalize the accord began in Geneva, Tedros said a health threat anywhere in the world could become a global danger, calling on member states to reach consensus on outstanding issues.
He explained that an outbreak of hantavirus earlier this year, alongside the continued spread of Ebola in the DRC, reflects persistent health risks and the need for more effective international cooperation mechanisms.
Tedros stressed that the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that no country can protect itself in isolation, highlighting the importance of ensuring the equitable sharing of health data and resources.
Negotiations remain divided over the “Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing” mechanism, which governs the exchange of biological samples, data, vaccines, treatments, and diagnostics.
The WHO chief concluded by emphasizing that an agreement on this mechanism represents the final hurdle to concluding the treaty, noting that addressing the inequities exposed by the pandemic provides a solid foundation for building a global health system capable of repelling future crises.