GENEVA (Reuters) – South Africa said on Tuesday that consensus has been reached to hold a special session of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) decision-making body from Nov. 29 to Dec. 1 to consider negotiating a new international treaty on pandemic preparedness.
South Africa’s delegation, speaking on behalf of 26 countries sponsoring the resolution, told the WHO’s annual ministerial assembly: “Probably the most important lesson COVID-19 has taught us is the need for stronger and more agile collective defences against health threats as well as for building resilience to address future potential pandemics.
“A new pandemic treaty is central to this.”
(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
