Geneva: World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called on world governments to adopt a landmark international pandemic agreement, emphasizing its importance in preventing the inequalities and lack of coordination seen during the COVID-19 crisis.

Speaking at the World Health Assembly in Geneva on Monday, where delegates from across the globe have gathered to review the draft pandemic agreement, Tedros praised the efforts of countries that helped bring the accord close to finalization, calling it a historic milestone for global health.

The proposed agreement aims to strengthen international cooperation in pandemic preparedness, including early detection, prevention, and equitable access to treatments, vaccines, and diagnostics. It directly responds to the vaccine hoarding and unequal healthcare access experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially by developing nations.

Under the agreement, countries would commit to rapidly sharing information on emerging pathogens and to fairly distributing medical tools developed from shared data. The framework is expected to be fully implemented by 2026, once ratified by at least 60 WHO member states.

Despite its broad support, some nations have raised concerns about the treaty potentially infringing on national sovereignty. However, a majority of countries view the agreement as essential for ensuring global health security and a unified response to future health emergencies.