Elevating Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response to the Highest Level of Political Leadership

Urges Member States to increase international collaboration and coordination on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response at the highest political level, including by participating in and supporting ongoing discussions to draft and negotiate a World Health Organization convention, agreement or other international instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, with a view to adoption under article 19 or under other provisions of the Constitution of the World Health Organization as may be deemed appropriate by the intergovernmental negotiating body and through discussions on strengthening the implementation of and compliance with the International Health Regulations (2005);

Encourages United Nations entities and other international organizations, as well as all relevant stakeholders, to contribute to the ongoing discussions to draft and negotiate a convention, agreement or other international instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response under the auspices of the World Health Organization;

Calls upon Member States to prioritize pandemic prevention, preparedness and response in their national agendas, with full respect for human rights, to ensure a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, to achieve universal health coverage with primary health care as its cornerstone, which is fundamental to realizing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,¹² to build resilient health systems able to maintain essential public health functions, services and access to these, to support and protect the health workforce, and to institute social and economic support that can sustain the widespread uptake of public health measures;

Urges Member States to continue to strengthen national, regional and local health systems by advancing universal health coverage and universal access to affordable quality essential health services, which will enhance their pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, with a focus on primary health care, as well as the availability, accessibility and affordability of quality health services and quality, safe, effective, affordable and essential medicines, vaccines, diagnostics and health technologies;

Calls upon Member States to ensure that primary health care is among the core components of strengthening preparedness and response mechanisms for future health emergencies, and to explore approaches to strengthening primary health care during the pandemic and beyond, taking into account the work of the World Health Organization on the operational framework for primary health care, and further calls upon Member States to align their actions and support with national policies, strategies and plans with the spirit of partnership and effective development cooperation in implementing the vision and commitments of the Declaration of Astana;

Also calls upon Member States to further strengthen cooperation to train, develop and retain a skilled health workforce, which is an important element of strong and resilient health systems, as part of health emergency prevention and preparedness strategies, guided by target 3.c of the 2030 Agenda, and notes with concern that highly trained and skilled health personnel from developing countries continue to emigrate at an increasing rate to certain countries, which weakens health systems in the countries of origin;

Invites Member States to work together with the medical and scientific community and with laboratory and surveillance networks to promote the early, safe, transparent and rapid sharing of samples and genetic sequence data of pathogens of pandemic and epidemic, or other high-risk, potential, taking into account relevant national and international laws, regulations, obligations and frameworks, including, as appropriate, the International Health Regulations (2005), the Convention on Biological Diversity,¹³ the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization¹⁴ and the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework, and the importance of ensuring rapid access to human pathogens for public health preparedness and response purposes;

Urges Member States to continue to support the work of the Working Group on Strengthening World Health Organization Preparedness and Response to Health Emergencies, in particular its mandate to consider the findings and recommendations of the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, the Review Committee on the Functioning of the International Health Regulations (2005) during the COVID-19 Response and the Independent Oversight and Advisory Committee for the World Health Organization Health Emergencies Programme, including to promote equitable access to and the fair distribution of vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics and essential supplies, in the case of health emergencies;

Also urges Member States to contribute to sustainable financing that provides adequate and predictable funding to the World Health Organization, which enables it to have the resources needed to fulfil its core functions as defined in its Constitution, noting the importance of transformation, increased transparency, accountability and efficiency gains in the World Health Organization and stressing the relevance and importance of adequate funding of the World Health Organization Contingency Fund for Emergencies for its rapid response to health emergencies;

Further urges Member States to leverage existing financing tools and to explore potential options to mobilize additional reliable, predictable and sustainable funding for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, as well as funding for rapid surge response in the event of a public health emergency of international concern, and to consider strengthening global health financing mechanisms, as well as their roles and responsibilities;

Calls upon Member States to promote the transfer of technology and know-how and encourage research, innovation and commitments to voluntary licensing, where possible, in agreements where public funding has been invested in research and development for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, to strengthen local and regional capacities for the manufacturing, regulation and procurement of needed tools for equitable and effective access to vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics and essential supplies, as well as for clinical trials, and to increase global supply through facilitating transfer of technology within the framework of relevant multilateral agreements;

Urges Member States to strengthen international cooperation to support efforts to build and strengthen capacity in developing countries, including through enhanced official development assistance;

Also urges Member States to pursue sustainable and innovative health financing policies through, inter alia, effective domestic resource mobilization as well as better allocation and use of resources with adequate financing for primary health care, innovative financing and pandemic preparedness through close collaboration among relevant authorities, public-private partnerships, civil society, academia and philanthropy;

Calls upon the World Health Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the World Organization for Animal Health and the United Nations Environment Programme to build on and strengthen their existing cooperation, and to develop options, for consideration by their respective governing bodies, to establish a common strategy, including a joint workplan on One Health, taking into account input from relevant stakeholders, including the One Health High-Level Expert Panel, as appropriate, to improve the prevention, monitoring, detection, control and containment of zoonotic diseases, threats to health and ecosystems, the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance, and future health emergencies, by fostering cooperation and a coordinated approach between the human health, animal health and plant health sectors, environmental and other relevant sectors, and urges Member States to adopt an all-hazard, multisectoral and coordinated approach to prevention, preparedness and response for health emergencies, in the context of the One Health approach;

Requests the Secretary-General, in close collaboration with the Director General of the World Health Organization as well as with relevant international organizations, to report to the General Assembly at its seventy-seventh session, under the item entitled “Global health and foreign policy”, on progress in strengthening global pandemic prevention, preparedness and response in order to improve the United Nations response to global health emergencies.