Global agreement: pandemic treaty approved at the WHO meeting

Global agreement: pandemic treaty approved at the WHO meeting

On Tuesday, May 20, 2025, more than 190 member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) adopted a historic pandemic treaty in Geneva. Loud OE24 This is a crucial step to better prepare the world for future pandemics and health crises, especially after the challenges of the Corona crisis. The agreement on the treaty came after three years of intensive negotiations and represents a significant step forward in the global health architecture.

The agreement aims to avoid chaotic conditions during pandemics, as seen in the past. One of the key components of the deal is the creation of a new mechanism to rapidly share pathogen data with pharmaceutical companies, accelerating the development of vaccines and treatments. This is to ensure that richer countries do not hoard vaccines and poorer countries receive access, it is reported The press.

Political reactions and resistance

Despite widespread support at the international level, there is significant opposition to the treaty in some countries. In Austria, the FPÖ, the largest National Council party, rejected the agreement and started an online petition against it. The party argues that the treaty could create unfavorable conditions for national health care and fears that national sovereignty in health matters will be threatened.

The contractual framework will be discussed by Member States and will contain rules for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response in order to provide a guide for action both before and during a pandemic. The focus is on strengthening capacities for early detection and resilience, such as this Federal Ministry of Health turns out. However, it is expected that it will take years before the agreement finally comes into force as it requires the ratification of at least 60 states.

Outlook for implementation

A contentious issue that has arisen in the negotiations concerns the conditions for the provision of dangerous microorganisms to vaccine manufacturers. This topic has been moved to an annex which has not yet been finalized. The technical implementation of the data sharing mechanism is also expected to be approved by the member states next year. The WHO Secretariat will support the international negotiations, but the member states alone determine the content of the agreement.

Overall, the adoption of the Pandemic Treaty demonstrates a strong political commitment from the international community to combat pandemic threats. It remains to be seen how individual countries will implement the measures, especially given the different national laws and frameworks.