A renewed effort to combat emergencies globally was launched here this week when 38 countries and areas in the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region agreed on urgent action to strengthen international regulations for public health surveillance, alert and response.
Countries large and small – from China and Indonesia to island nations across the Pacific – gathered at the seventy-sixth session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Western Pacific. They joined forces to become the first WHO region to adopt a plan to implement recent amendments to the International Health Regulations (2005).
Known as IHR, the regulations are a legally binding treaty requiring 196 State Parties, including all WHO Member States, to build core public health capacities to prevent, detect and respond to public health threats that have the potential to cross borders.
“At a time when health emergencies are arriving faster than before, from emerging infectious diseases to climate-related disasters, the Western Pacific Region has been a global model for forward-looking health security action,” said Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific.
“Taken together, strengthened IHR implementation, along the WHO Pandemic Agreement endorsed by WHO Member States earlier this year, will – if optimally implemented – make our world safer and more secure,” he said.
The Regional Director added that the plan endorsed this week – Implementing the IHR (2005) Amendments in the Western Pacific Region – demonstrated the commitment of Member States in the Western Pacific Region to build more cohesive, coordinated and equitable systems to guard against future public health threats.
Health emergencies, most prominently the COVID-19 pandemic, have revealed persistent vulnerabilities: fragmented surveillance systems, disruptions to logistics and supply chains, and overwhelming demand for limited health products. As health emergencies become increasingly complex, severe and interconnected, cross-border collaboration is vital.
The plan endorsed this week provides a collaborative approach to support implementation of the IHR amendments across the Region, which is home to more than 2.2 billion people or one fourth of the world’s population. It will also offers options to fortify regional operational response capacities to ensure faster and more cohesive responses to future emergencies – for example, through integrated surveillance and risk assessment, contingency funds and advance purchase agreements to secure health products during an emergency.
“The Western Pacific is the first Region to endorse measurable targets for implementing the amendments to the IHR, which started taking effect last month,” said Dr Gina Samaan, Regional Emergency Director at the WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific. "Our Region has a long, strong history of championing health security,” she added.
"Coordinated implementation of the IHR amendments, which emphasize the need for sharing timely information, technical expertise and rapid response actions, will ensure that all countries and areas, regardless of size or capacity, contribute to and benefits from a more resilient Western Pacific Region," she said.
During this week’s session of the Regional Committee, the annual meeting of the Organization’s top regional governing body, countries and areas shared examples of how IHR had strengthened their disease surveillance and response efforts.
“The Western Pacific Region has shown what collaborative determination can accomplish,” said Rahayu binte Mahzam, Minister of State for Health, Singapore Ministry of Health. “National preparedness alone, while essential, is by itself insufficient. Pathogens don’t respect borders and neither can our response work in national silos. Regional collaboration isn’t just beneficial, it's essential for our collective security.”
“For our country and across the Region, these IHR amendments align closely with the Western Pacific regional vision of weaving health for families, communities and societies,” said Junior Aini, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the Marshall Islands to the Republic of Fiji and the Pacific Island Countries. “By strengthening our health security architecture, we safeguard health, support broader development and reinforce regional cohesion.”
"Implementation of the IHR amendments heralds a new era for health emergency preparedness and response," added Celia Street PSM, Deputy Secretary, Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing
"Let's pull together to ensure the practical and effective implementation of the newly amended regulations for filling our historical mission of safeguarding global health security," Dr Xue Bo from the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration, China.
Under the plan, Member States in the WHO Western Pacific Region agreed to prioritize these actions:
- designate national IHR authorities to coordinate implementation of IHR;
- update national pandemic plans and relevant policy, contracts and agreements;
- adjust national legislation, administrative arrangements, policy and resources to support multisectoral implementation of the amendments; and
- identify priority measures to improve regional, collective readiness for future public health emergencies.
WHO will provide technical assistance to support this work, including through engagement with international partners, tools and support to adapt national legislation and strengthen core capacities, and consultations to assess existing systems and support progress tracking.
About the International Health Regulations (2005) amendments
The International Health Regulations (IHR 2005) provide the international legal framework to prevent, detect and respond to public health threats with the potential to cross borders. They are an instrument of international law and legally binding on 196 States Parties, including all WHO Member States. At the Seventy-seventh World Health Assembly in 2024, targeted amendments to the IHR (2005) were adopted (resolution WHA77.17) that introduced new obligations and elements, including designation a National IHR Authority, definition of a “pandemic emergency” and enhancement multisectoral capacities. The amendments began to enter into force on 19 September 2025.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, Member States worked with unprecedented resolve to strengthen global health security architecture, leading to two landmark agreements: targeted amendments to IHR (2005) and the WHO Pandemic Agreement. Together, these agreements mark a crossroads in global health security — strengthening collective emergency preparedness, coordination and equity.
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