The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned governments that another pandemic will come, urging countries to strengthen their preparedness and urgently conclude negotiations on a global pathogen-sharing framework.
WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, gave the warning on Friday at the High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“The next pandemic is a matter of when, not if,” Tedros said, pointing to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as a reminder of the continuing threat posed by infectious diseases.
According to him, although Ebola was unlikely to become a pandemic, its outbreak demonstrated that epidemic threats remain a constant challenge to local communities and the international health system.
Tedros recalled that shortly after his election as WHO Director-General in 2017, he was asked at Columbia University whether the world was ready for the next pandemic, but just over two years later, COVID-19 arrived and confirmed the seriousness of the warning.
According to Tedros, the pandemic caused well over 20 million excess deaths and wiped over $10 trillion from the global economy.
He declared that the pandemic also exposed major weaknesses in global health security, leading to the creation of initiatives aimed at strengthening surveillance, early warning, national preparedness, vaccine access and international emergency response.
Among the measures he cited were the Pandemic Fund, COVAX, the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence in Berlin, the mRNA Technology Transfer Programme, the WHO BioHub and the Global Health Emergency Corps.
Tedros also highlighted progress in strengthening the international legal framework for pandemic prevention and response.
Amendments to the International Health Regulations entered into force in September 2025, while member states adopted the WHO Pandemic Agreement at the World Health Assembly last year.
Describing the agreement as “very historic”, Tedros said its adoption showed that countries could still find common ground despite deep global divisions.
“In a divided and divisive world, countries found common ground for a common purpose,” he said.
He said, however, negotiations on the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) system remained unfinished.
Tedros urged countries to conclude the negotiations as quickly as possible, making the issue the central appeal of his address.
He warned that continued delays could have consequences far beyond diplomatic procedure.
“Further delays are not just delays in procedure or process. They are delays that cost all countries dearly when the next pandemic arrives,” Tedros said.
The WHO chief said the political declaration before the meeting included commitments to strengthen local and national health capacities, invest in resilient health systems, rebuild public trust, engage communities and ensure equitable access to vaccines, medicines and other pandemic tools.
He also rejected concerns that the WHO Pandemic Agreement and International Health Regulations would compromise national sovereignty.
“The Pandemic Agreement and the IHR do not – I repeat, do not – infringe on national sovereignty in any way,” he said.
According to Tedros, pandemics do not respect national borders, making cooperation essential to global health security.
Tedros acknowledged that the world had made progress since COVID-19 but warned that pandemic preparedness could never be regarded as complete.
“We can never say the world is ready enough. The threat evolves, and so must we,” he said.
Asked whether the world is now more prepared than it was before COVID-19, Tedros offered a cautious assessment: “Yes and no.”
“But if you fulfil the commitments you are making today, you will make it a yes,” he said.
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