WHO Director-General and Brazil President Call for Urgent Support of Pandemic Treaty

France. As the G7 summit is starting in France, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva have issued a joint letter stating that the pandemic treaty must be immediately supported at a high political level. They have called on the world community to conclude the agreement, saying, 'Another pandemic will not wait for us.'

The leaders have urged that an international agreement on how to deal with future pandemics be quickly finalized, fulfilling the commitment made to the millions of people who lost their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This appeal comes at a time when Ebola infection is spreading rapidly in the Democratic Republic of Congo. So far, 782 confirmed cases and 181 deaths have occurred there.

The next round of negotiations on the annex regarding the exchange of information on pathogens and the sharing of benefits arising from it under the WHO's pandemic agreement is scheduled for next month. The entire agreement cannot come into effect until that annex is implemented.

The deadline set for May was missed due to a lack of consensus among countries on how to share information about viruses and bacteria that could cause pandemics and what kind of access to vaccines, tests, and treatments should be ensured in return.

Developing countries have expressed concern that if pharmaceutical companies do not mandatorily share vaccines and treatments they develop after developing countries provide their pandemic-related data, the situation of poor nations receiving vaccines only at the last moment, as during COVID-19, could be repeated. However, industry representatives have argued that mandatory provisions could hinder research and development.

World leaders first proposed the concept of a pandemic treaty in March 2021. Five years later, Tedros and Lula addressed the leaders, urging them to bring the agreement to a conclusion, saying, 'The world must complete the work it started.'

The joint letter reminds of the painful memories of the COVID period, urging not to forget the situation where hospitals were full, and families had to say their final goodbyes to their loved ones through glass windows or telephones.

According to estimates by organizations including the WHO, approximately 20 million people worldwide lost their lives due to COVID-19. The letter states, 'Amidst that deep sorrow, humanity vowed never to face such days unprepared again.'

According to them, that annex is the 'final link' to fulfill that promise. This requires high political will, a spirit of equality, and immediate implementation.

The letter mentions that COVID-19 caused more than 13 trillion US dollars in damage to the global economy, stating that investing in an effective system capable of early identification of future pandemics would be a much smaller expense in comparison.