Your Excellencies Ministers Keizo Takemi, Nísia Trindade Lima, Joe Phaahla, Anne Beathe Kristiansen and Sir Molwyn Joseph,
Civil society representative Mr Onesmus Mlewa Kalama,
Our moderator, Dr Ebere Okereke,
Excellencies, dear colleagues and friends,
A very good morning to you, and thank you all for joining us today for this important discussion.
Over the past three years, COVID-19 has caused us all great suffering and taught us many painful lessons.
We owe it to those we have lost to learn those lessons, and to transform that suffering into meaningful and lasting change.
COVID-19 may be over as a global health emergency, but the threat of another pathogen emerging with even deadlier potential remains.
The pandemic highlighted our collective vulnerabilities, and it exposed vast inequities and gaps in the world’s defences.
The rapid development and approval of safe and effective vaccines, tests and treatments was a triumph of science, but the horrific inequities in access we saw were a stain on our collective conscience.
WHO Member States are now working hard to make sure that the mistakes of the past are not repeated, through the ongoing negotiations on the pandemic accord and amendments to the International Health Regulations.
This week’s political declaration on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response is a further sign of the collective commitment of countries to building a safer future.
However, as we all know, negotiations take time, especially on issues of such global importance.
But the next pandemic or major disease outbreak will not wait for us.
The world was unprepared for COVID-19 and, as things stand, we remain unprepared – and we all know that.
So, without pre-empting the ongoing discussions – we have to respect the INB and IHR – we need to put systems in place so that if a global health emergency strikes, we are ready.
Building on the legacy of the ACT Accelerator and the PIP Framework, WHO has proposed an interim coordination mechanism, which would help to improve coordination for timely, effective and equitable access to life-saving interventions.
We are also engaging with the G7 process led by Japan, the G20 process led by India and the Johannesburg process, led by Norway and South Africa, to foster coherence and convergence among these various initiatives.
In developing a coherent and effective process for equitable access to medical countermeasures, it is critical that all countries have an equal voice at the table.
Thank you all for your interest in this very important issue, and for your commitment to equity.
I look forward to an open and robust discussion, as we come together in the search for joint solutions for a global challenge.
I thank you.