Creating better protection against future pandemics

World leaders have renewed their commitment to protecting against future pandemics. They came together to call for stronger international cooperation, investment, and preparedness at a high-level United Nations meeting in New York

The second UN General Assembly High-level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response (PPPR) was held on 25 September 2026. The United Nations meeting reviewed progress since the first high-level meeting in 2023 and discussed the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lessons from COVID-19

Countries agreed that preparing for future pandemics cannot be treated as a health issue alone. Governments, communities, and organisations across sectors will need to work together to identify threats early, strengthen health systems, and respond quickly when outbreaks occur.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said significant progress has been made since 2023. This includes adopting the WHO Pandemic Agreement and amending the International Health Regulations. New global initiatives have also been established to improve disease surveillance, pathogen sharing, and local production of vaccines, medicines, and diagnostic tools.

However, the WHO said continued investment is still needed to maintain the progress made so far. COVID-19 was linked to more than 20 million excess deaths between 2020 and 2023 and caused losses of more than US$10 trillion to the global economy.

Focus on the Pandemic Agreement

A major issue discussed at the meeting was the need to complete negotiations on an annex to the WHO Pandemic Agreement. The proposed Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) system aims to ensure pathogens with pandemic potential can be shared quickly while also ensuring the benefits from their use are distributed fairly.

The system is designed to support the development and equitable distribution of vaccines, medicines and diagnostic tools. WHO Member States are working towards adopting the annex at the World Health Assembly in May 2027. Its adoption would allow countries to begin considering ratification of the wider Pandemic Agreement.

Global cooperation

The United Nations meeting’s political declaration stressed that protecting national health security depends on international cooperation. Leaders highlighted the importance of closing financing gaps, strengthening health systems and ensuring fair access to essential medical supplies.

The declaration also emphasised a One Health approach, which recognises the links between human, animal and environmental health. Preventing future pandemics, it argued, must begin before an outbreak occurs by identifying and addressing risks early.

The meeting concluded with a call for pandemic prevention and preparedness to remain a long-term political priority, rather than receiving attention only during major health emergencies.