The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday called on countries to sign a pandemic treaty to prepare for “Disease X” at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus share He hopes the international community can reach an agreement on the pandemic by May to fight this “common enemy”.
scientists identified 'Disease Used as a placeholder.
WHO November 2022 press release It was revealed that Disease X “has the potential to cause a serious international epidemic.”
At a conference held in the fall of the same year, WHO researchers said the process included “both scientific and public health criteria, as well as criteria related to socio-economic impact, access and equity.” They began studying various pathogens to determine if the elusive disease X could be the cause.
Speaking at the WEF Summit, chaired by WEF founder Klaus Schwab, Ghebreyesus said coronavirus is the first disease X, but people need to prepare for other diseases.
BREAKING: WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is currently presenting Disease X preparedness at WEF24 in Davos. A key element in preparing for Disease X is for countries to sign the WHO Pandemic Agreement. pic.twitter.com/uUjvgqxtcO
— Rukshan Fernando (@therealrukshan) January 17, 2024
“Unknown things can happen, and what happens is a matter of when, not if. So for unknown diseases, we need to have alternatives for that.” health officials said.
“We lost a lot of people [during the coronavirus pandemic] Because we couldn't control them,” Ghebreyesus said. “We could have saved them, but we didn't have the space. We didn't have enough oxygen. So how do we build a system that can scale when we need it?”
He went on to say that collective action, strengthened by international treaties, will help the world better respond to new outbreaks.
“The Pandemic Agreement can bring together all the experiences we have faced, all the challenges and all the solutions,” Ghebreyesus insisted. “This agreement will help us prepare for the future in a better way.”
“This is a common global interest, and very narrow national interests should not get in the way.”
According to the WHO Director-General, the expert committee has been considering ways to cooperate ahead of the May deadline for signing the treaty.
Preparation methods could include “promoting early warning systems, organizing supply chains, and promoting research and development for drug testing.” report of new york post.
Ghebreyesus went on to argue that “it's happened many times in our history, so it's better to anticipate what might happen and prepare for it.”
“We shouldn't face things unprepared. We can also be prepared for some unknowns,” he said.
Fox News reports that the Biden administration negotiation The Global Pandemic Treaty was signed last year, even though Republicans criticized the deal, which could have ceded sovereignty to the WHO.
Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) said, “The World Health Organization's Pandemic Treaty is extremely vague, affects our sovereignty, and provides guidance to the American people in the event of a global pandemic.'' “It could be misused to tell people whether they need such medical care.” said in May.
