The World Health Organization outlined three priorities for the 75th UN General Assembly: ensuring equitable access to COVID-19 tools, maintaining progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and strengthening preparations for future pandemics.
The WHO called on world leaders to support the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT)-Accelerator, an international partnership designed to speed up the development, production and fair distribution of tests, treatments and vaccines, while strengthening health systems. The initiative aims to pool investment so countries can access more tools sooner and share the risks and costs.
The organization said the ACT-Accelerator needs US$35 billion to support the development, procurement and distribution over the next year of 2 billion vaccine doses, 245 million treatments and 500 million tests. It argued that investment in equitable global access is small compared with the economic impact of COVID-19 and the stimulus packages used to support economies.
The WHO also warned that the pandemic threatens to reverse decades of progress in health and development. In a recent survey, 90% of countries reported disruptions to essential health services. Commonly affected areas included routine immunization, care for non-communicable diseases, family planning, mental health treatment, and cancer diagnosis and care.
To help countries meet health-related SDG targets, the WHO said stronger health and data systems rooted in primary healthcare are needed. It also highlighted the Global Action Plan for Healthy Lives and Well-being for All, which brings together 12 multilateral agencies to support progress on those goals.
The WHO’s third priority was joint preparation for future pandemics. It pointed to a 2019 warning from the independent Global Preparedness Monitoring Board and its 2020 report, “World in disorder,” which described a global response marked by insufficient leadership and delays. The board called for renewed commitment to multilateralism and the WHO.
At the General Assembly, the WHO planned to urge leaders and citizens to support the report’s five actions: responsible leadership, engaged citizenship, strong and agile health security systems, sustained investment, and robust global governance of preparedness.
Sources: WHO News.