Countries agree: the next pandemic must be met faster — and fairer

The UN General Assembly has adopted a new Political Declaration on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response — a shared promise, written in the shadow of COVID-19, to spot health threats earlier, respond faster, and share vaccines, treatments and supplies more fairly when the next crisis comes. The World Health Organization welcomed the declaration, noting that preparedness is not only a health job but an economic and development one too. One hard piece remains: finishing the system for sharing pathogen samples and the benefits that flow from them, part of the WHO Pandemic Agreement countries are still negotiating.

SDG 3 · Good health and well-being — Mechanism: policy reform