By Chibuike Nwabuko
ABUJA (PRECISE POST) – United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that the next pandemic is inevitable, urging Member States to accelerate global efforts to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
Guterres made the call in a message delivered on his behalf by UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed at a High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response at the onging United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
The UN chief said the meeting addressed the critical need for a coordinated global approach to pandemic threats based on equity, solidarity and effective multilateral action.
He said the approach must also uphold the core promise of the 2030 Agenda to leave no one behind and demonstrate that the international community had learned the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The COVID-19 pandemic taught us that, in our interconnected world, no country can protect itself alone,” Guterres said, noting that the lesson came at an immense human and economic cost.
He called for the lessons of COVID-19 to be translated into lasting preparedness through equitable responses, international cooperation, science and stronger engagement with communities and local health workers.
Guterres also warned against allowing a recurrence of a pattern in which international attention and resources surge when outbreaks begin but diminish as infections decline.
“Too often, complacency replaces action,” he said. “When a virus first hits, money flows and promises are made. But when infections slow, commitments start to wane.”
He said the erosion of public confidence in health systems that accompanies such a cycle must be prevented.
Three areas of focus
According to the Secretary-General, the international community should concentrate on three key areas as it builds on the 2023 political declaration on pandemic preparedness.
First, he called for the closure of massive financing gaps and urged governments to provide predictable and sustainable resources for community-based systems responsible for detection, surveillance, communication and containment.
“When communities are protected, we are all protected,” he said.
Second, Guterres called for a genuine “One Health” approach, stressing the intrinsic link between human health and the health of the natural environment, including plants and animals.
He urged countries to deepen their understanding of interactions between humans and the natural world in order to identify and stop outbreaks before they spread to humans.
Third, he stressed that equity must remain central to global pandemic preparedness, insisting that all countries should have access to life-saving tools.
“Equity is not optional, it is foundational,” he said, describing equitable access as both a matter of justice and an effective means of stopping outbreaks.
Guterres also highlighted progress made since the 2023 political declaration, including amendments to the International Health Regulations and the adoption of the World Health Organization’s pandemic agreement.
He, however, said negotiations on the pathogen access and benefit-sharing annex were yet to be concluded, despite progress.
The Secretary-General also pointed to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo as evidence that dangerous pathogens continue to test the world’s collective preparedness.
He called on Member States to accelerate negotiations and actions needed to fully implement the global pandemic framework.
“The Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing system under negotiation is critical to unlocking the full potential of the WHO pandemic agreement,” he said, urging countries: “Let’s deliver the Pandemic Agreement the world is waiting for.”
Guterres said pandemic preparedness also directly reflected the theme of the year’s General Assembly: “Restoring trust, managing transformation: a United Nations that delivers for all.”
He concluded with a warning that underscored the urgency of global preparedness: “The next pandemic is not a question of ‘if’. It is a question of ‘when’.”
“It will test our health systems – and our commitment to one another,” he said, urging countries to ensure that the world is prepared to meet that test.
