Landmark deal reached by WHO a booster shot for tackling pandemics

Years of negotiations culminated in countries agreeing on the text of a landmark accord on how to tackle future pandemics, aimed at avoiding a repeat of the mistakes made during the Covid-19 crisis, in the wee hours of April 16.

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GENEVA - Years of negotiations culminated in countries agreeing on the text of a landmark accord on how to tackle future pandemics, aimed at avoiding a repeat of the mistakes made during the Covid-19 crisis, in the wee hours of April 16.

After more than three years of talks and a final marathon session, weary delegates at the World Health Organisation (WHO) headquarters could finally pop the champagne corks.

"The nations of the world made history in Geneva today," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

"In reaching consensus on the Pandemic Agreement, not only did they put in place a generational accord to make the world safer, they have also demonstrated that multilateralism is alive and well, and that in our divided world, nations can still work together to find common ground, and a shared response to shared threats."