Countries sign off on global pandemic treaty at annual WHO meeting in Geneva

Published connected 20/05/2025 - 9:45 GMT+2•Updated 12:22

Countries approved a landmark pact connected Tuesday that intends to debar nan mistakes of nan COVID-19 pandemic successful early world wellness crises.

The treaty’s general support astatine nan yearly gathering of nan World Health Organization (WHO) came aft immoderate late-breaking hostility connected Monday, erstwhile Slovakia challenged nan treaty’s take by calling for an early ballot – and past abstained, on pinch Poland, Italy, and 8 different countries.

But nan pact was yet approved pinch mostly support and adopted by personnel states connected Tuesday.

WHO personnel states had agreed past month connected astir of nan treaty’s details, though they will proceed negotiations connected a fewer sticking points.

The statement "will guarantee countries activity better, faster and much equitably together to forestall and respond to nan adjacent pandemic threat," said WHO main Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Macron: 'We Need to enactment arsenic quickly arsenic possible'

The legally binding accord will require countries to return steps to prevent, hole for, and respond to early pandemics, pinch nan extremity of making aesculapian supplies specified arsenic vaccines much accessible crossed nan globe.

During early pandemics, "we request to enactment arsenic quickly arsenic possible, yes, but we besides request to dispersed nan innovations we’ve made much quickly," France’s President Emmanuel Macron told nan assembly aft nan vote.

"It’s not a mobility of if we will person a caller pandemic, it’s a mobility of erstwhile we’ll person it," he added.

But location are still a fewer issues that person yet to beryllium resolved, and nan pact won’t spell into unit until they person been agreed upon.

One point still connected nan array is nan creation of a caller pathogen entree and use sharing (PABS) strategy successful which countries would stock pathogen samples and information pinch drugmakers successful return for entree to vaccines and medicines. 

Member states purpose to complete negotiations wrong a year.

Once that happens, countries will motion and ratify nan pact astatine home. It will participate into unit erstwhile it reaches 60 ratifications.

The United States is not expected to ratify nan pact nether nan Trump administration, which could undermine its effectiveness.

"Hardly anyone would person thought this imaginable aft nan United States withdrew from nan WHO," Germany's wellness curate Nina Warken said up of nan vote.

She said nan WHO should proceed its ongoing reforms and attraction connected its "core tasks: world wellness surveillance, pandemic prevention, illness control, and equitable entree to healthcare".