Geneva hosts 78th World Health Assembly

The 78th World Health Assembly opened in this capital on Monday, focused on the approval of more than 40 resolutions, among them, the Treaty on future pandemics.

Gathered at the Palais des Nations under the slogan “One World for Health,” the program of the meeting, active until May 27, includes the debate on the proposed program budget 2026-2027, aligned with the 14th WHO General Program of Work (GPW 14), the organization’s global health strategy for the 2025-2028 period.

The delegates will also be make decisions on priorities such as cervical cancer elimination, lung and kidney health, rare diseases, imaging capacity, skin diseases, traditional medicine, lead exposure, health financing, and antimicrobial resistance.

Just a month ago, more than 190 countries approved the text of the Treaty on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response, as part of the World Health Organization (WHO)’s negotiations.

This Treaty will help to improve coordination among countries and a more equitable distribution of available resources to deal with the next pandemic, which scientists have warned will occur sooner or later with a new pathogen.

After three years of intense negotiations, WHO members took a major step forward in efforts to make the world safer from pandemics by forging a draft agreement for consideration at the World Health Assembly in May, the organization said in a first reaction.