Event highlights

Fifth hearing on co-creating and co-owning EPW2: “Health security and emergency preparedness”

WHO/Europe held the fifth of 5 public health hearings to shape the second European Programme of Work (EPW2), the health compass for the WHO European Region for the next 5 years. A total of 859 participants engaged in online discussions and took part in 7 breakout sessions. The consultative process represents the first time that a WHO regional office has developed a plan co-owned and co-authored by the people of its region.

The event was co-hosted by Ms Cristiana Salvi, Regional Adviser for Risk Communication, Community Engagement and Infodemic Management; Dr Gundo Weiler, Director, Special Adviser Strategy; and Dr Ihor Perehinets, Regional Emergency Director.

Plenary sessions

During the high-level introductory segment, Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, opened the hearing by describing his firsthand clinical experience in conflict settings. He compared health security issues in warzones to the different threats faced by people in the WHO European Region, and stressed his core mission of leaving no one behind. Praising the inclusion of health in the prioritization of security in the European Union (EU) Presidency agenda, Dr Kluge also emphasized the impact of security concerns on public mental health.

Dr Sandra Gallina, Director General for Health and Food Safety at the European Commission, underlined the importance of a coordinated approach beyond the health sector, referencing the upcoming launch of the EU prevention and preparedness response plan. Dr Gallina stressed the need for investment in intelligence data, robust systems, well trained teams and global partnerships.                                                                                                           

His Excellency Ambassador Kubanychbek Kasymovich Omuraliev, Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States, drew upon the solidarity demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic, expressing that the same solidarity should be leveraged to respond to new challenges. Referencing the Agreement of the Establishment of a Civil Protection Mechanism and the adoption of Türkiye’s Green Vision, His Excellency Omuraliev outlined how the agreements provide a framework for ensuring that the Region is better equipped to meet the challenges posed by current and future emergencies.

Dr Ala Nemerenco, Minister of Health of the Republic of Moldova, outlined how the country’s national health system had its resilience tested by a series of crises, but seized the opportunity to accelerate reforms, strengthen resilience and reinforce commitment to universal health coverage. Reconfirming her country’s commitment to a coordinated, multisectoral approach integrating international health security frameworks, Dr Nemenrenco stressed the necessity of long-term, system-wide preparedness.

Dr Ihor Perehinets echoed the importance of health security to the EPW2 framework, stressing its centrality as a prerequisite of sustainable development, social cohesion, and economic and political stability. Good health security, which is coordinated across sectors, means that health systems have the resilience to handle crises and grow stronger, leading to healthier populations and more stable and equitable futures. Dr Perehinets added that the Region has a solid foundation to build on, with the recently endorsed strategy and action plan for health emergencies, Preparedness 2.0.

Mr Robb Butler, WHO/Europe’s Director for Communicable Diseases, Environment and Health, highlighted the need for a paradigm shift and the move to a broader concept of health security that considers emerging and future threats as well as persistent threats, such as the rise of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis and the resurgence of measles.

A series of lightning talks were presented by Ms Birgitte Bischoff Ebbesen, Regional Director for Europe of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies; Dr Taha Alexandersson, Director of Emergency Preparedness and Civil Defence at the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare; Dr Raed Arafat, Secretary of State of the Department for Emergency Situations at the Romanian Ministry of Internal Affairs; Professor David Salisbury, Chair of the Global Commission and European Regional Commission for the Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication; Dr Tetiana Deshko, Director of International Programmes at Alliance for Public Health, Ukraine; and Ms Siân Crucefix, Co-Chair of the Lancet Counter-misinformation Working Group.

A key theme throughout these interventions was the urgent need to enhance coordination and collaboration for health security at every level, across all sectors and the whole of society. Speakers highlighting the vital importance of collective preparedness to safeguard everyone from the next health emergency.

Breakout room discussions

Participants split into 7 breakout groups for in-depth discussion of the issues addressed in the plenary session.

Breakout room 1 focused on “Preparing for the next pandemic”. This discussion emphasized the importance of preparedness to make the response to the next pandemic more effective, highlighting the need for countries to strengthen their International Health Regulations (2005) core capacities and address vaccine scepticism. There was a strong call for investing in a scalable, flexible workforce, including nonmedical professionals, and tailoring contemporary legal frameworks to current health issues. The discussion also stressed the significance of surveillance for early detection and risk assessment, advocating for a One Health approach.  

Breakout room 2 centred on the theme “Resilience matters: rethinking health services in the face of escalating multiple hazards”. Participants agreed that health systems depend not only on infrastructure and investment, but also on the well-being of the health workforce, which is currently under more pressure due to worker shortages and increasing needs from ageing populations. There was general agreement that mental health services are central to emergency preparedness and response activities.

Breakout room 3 discussed “Communities at the core: strengthening resilience amid vulnerabilities and infodemics”. Participants agreed that community partnership, central to Preparedness 2.0, builds trust and increases public acceptance of protective measures. Engaging trusted influencers – such as religious leaders, health professionals, youth and volunteers – is key to understanding public needs, delivering trusted health advice, tackling infodemics, and ultimately enhancing health protection and emergency control. Establishing relationships and empowering communities is vital for resilience and requires investment in co-creation strategies; these should occur before crises hit as support is harder to gain during responses. Mapping communities, their influencers and assets; using insights to plan targeted interventions; and building health literacy and resilience to mis- and disinformation form the foundation of strong emergency preparedness.

Breakout room 4 focused on “Reimagining health security in the face of escalating natural and human-made hazards”. The group found that climate change poses profound risks to health security through both direct, acute effects caused by extreme events such as heatwaves and floods, and slow-onset effects such as water scarcity, new emerging diseases and displacement. Participants agreed that to build climate resilience in the Region, our capacities need to adapt to the new challenges and a wide range of different sectors need to be engaged from the areas of human and animal health, humanitarian response, urban planning, infrastructure, environment, and communication. 

Breakout room 5 looked at the theme “Some suffer more: reducing and addressing vulnerabilities”. Participants agreed that a dual-track approach is needed to ensure no one is left behind. Preventative measures require investment, and better collaboration is key to ensuring that stakeholders understand their roles. In some countries, the health and social sectors work in silos, which can lead to legal grey zones and confusion about responsibility. Vulnerable groups must be identified in advance to ensure participation and health literacy. Data-driven approaches are key to identifying those at higher risk, and communities play a valuable role by leveraging their local knowledge. Using this knowledge to forecast scenarios ensures that community vulnerabilities are mainstreamed into emergency plans.  

Breakout room 6 discussed “Old and new threats to health security: the changing patterns and priorities of communicable diseases”. There was a consensus on the unfinished agenda of integrating the control of vaccine-preventable diseases, antimicrobial resistance, tuberculosis, HIV, mental health and noncommunicable diseases (especially among the most vulnerable) into health security strategies for better resilience. Innovation was a further theme. New technologies, tools and modalities for collaboration will be increasingly important, but innovation is not only about new developments – it is also about expanding existing tools across programme areas. 

Breakout room 7 focused on “Withering attention: how to sustain momentum, investment and collaboration for health security”. Participants emphasized the need to prioritize building trust by leveraging risk communication, community engagement and infodemic management to empower communities and civil society to lead health security initiatives. Promoting civil–military collaboration to ensure the integration of health security and defence strategies was also mentioned. The group noted that fostering cross-border and multisectoral collaboration to address interconnected health challenges facing humans, animals and the environment by using the One Health approach is also essential to sustain momentum. 

Event notice

Health is a key pillar of our society. Recent events have shown that when health security is compromised, this affects the very foundations of every aspect of our lives, with long-lasting repercussions. In the WHO European Region, we are experiencing a permacrisis. Increasing pandemic risks, increasingly drug-resistant infectious diseases and both natural and human-made hazards, including climate-related ones and conflicts, mean that urgent and coordinated action must be taken.

Emergency risks are compounded by antimicrobial resistance; drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) and persistent epidemics of TB; HIV; hepatitis; declining immunization coverage rates; outbreaks of polio, measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases; noncommunicable diseases; and mental health, fueled by digital misinformation and disinformation.

There is unprecedented willingness to address these issues among the 53 Member States of the Region. The significance and urgency was underlined by the prioritization of health security during the 74^th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe.

Health security extends beyond the health sector to all essential components of population security and must be integrated into national security frameworks to build resilience against interconnected threats through coordination across sectors, societies and borders. 

WHO/Europe is organizing an external hearing on health security to bring together Member States, partners and civil society representatives.

The hearing aims to:

• mobilize a wide range of stakeholders for health security and emergency preparedness action;
• gather actionable ideas to inform the development of the second European Programme of Work 2026–2030 (EPW2); and
• foster partnerships to drive health security action across the Region.

Keynote speakers include:

• His Excellency Ambassador Kubanychbek Kasymovich Omuraliev, Secretary General, Organization of Turkic States;
• Sandra Gallina, Director General for Health and Food Safety, European Commission;
• Dr. Ala Nemerenco, Minister of Health of the Republic of Moldova;
• Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe;
• Dr Taha Alexandersson, Director, Emergency Preparedness and Civil Defence, National Board of Health and Welfare, Sweden;
• Dr Raed Arafat, Secretary of State, Head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Romania;
• Birgitte Bischoff-Ebbesen, Regional Director, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC);
• Professor David Salisbury, Chair, Global and European Regional Commissions for the Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication;
• Dr Tetiana Deshko, Director, International Programs at Alliance for Public Health, Ukraine; and
• Ms Siân Crucefix, Communications Manager and co-chair of the Lancet Counter-Misinformation Working Group, The Lancet Group.

Register now and help shape the future of health in Europe and central Asia.

WHO/ Europe’s work on health security

In the Region, immediate, decisive and coordinated action is crucial to bolstering preparedness and resilience at every level.

WHO is leading the way through the Health Emergency Preparedness, Response and Resilience (HEPR) framework, along with the transformative regional strategy and action plan on health emergency preparedness, response and resilience in the WHO European Region (Preparedness 2.0) for 2024–2029. Building on the foundations of the International Health Regulations (2005), these frameworks are designed to equip governments and communities to face an increasingly uncertain future with strength and unity. Other strategies for disease control and elimination, such as the European Immunization Agenda 2030 and regional action plans for TB, HIV and AMR, provide relevant frameworks.

Preparedness 2.0 emphasizes that health security must be a priority for governance and investment, extending beyond the health sector to address risks at the human, animal and environmental health interface. By promoting whole-of-government and whole-of-society, all-hazards, One Health and dual-track approaches, the strategy and action plan ensures that health systems are inclusive, responsive and firmly anchored in the needs of local communities.

Join the conversation for a healthier, safer WHO European Region!

In today’s ever-changing world, our Region faces challenges – from emerging pandemics and severe infectious diseases to natural and human-made hazards – that affect us all. Yet amid these pressing issues, there’s a growing, unprecedented spirit of collaboration among the 53 Member States of the Region.

We invite you to a public hearing where experts, policy-makers, partners and community voices will come together to discuss how we can tackle these challenges head-on. This is your opportunity to have your say on critical topics such as:

• preparing for the next pandemic;
• resilience matters – rethinking health services in the face of escalating multiple hazards;
• communities at the core – strengthening resilience amid vulnerabilities and infodemics;
• reimagining health security in the face of escalating natural and human-made hazards;
• some suffer more – reducing and addressing vulnerabilities;  
• old and new threats to health security – the changing patterns and priorities of communicable diseases; and
• withering attention – how to sustain momentum, investment and collaboration for health security.

WHO/Europe is organizing a series of hearings as part of the development process for the EPW2. These hearings provide a platform for Member States, civil society representatives and other partners to share insights, priorities and recommendations for shaping a unified health agenda for the Region up to 2030 and beyond.

The feedback gathered through these sessions will inform the EPW2, ensuring it addresses key health challenges and promotes equity and resilience. The hearings are conducted online, enabling broad participation and fostering collaboration across diverse stakeholders. Join the conversation for a healthier, safer WHO European Region and sign up for the hearings.

For further information, please contact: epw2@who.int.