A Statement from the Friends of the High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response
12 October 2026
New York: Today an overwhelming majority of Member States at the United Nations General Assembly adopted a Political Declaration as the outcome of the 25 September High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response (PPPR).
The Friends of the High-Level Meeting on PPPR applaud the adoption as an important marker of multilateral commitment to make the world safer from pandemic threats. Leaders must now act to turn words and commitments into action.
“Pandemic risks are not waiting,” the Friends said. “A rapidly growing Ebola outbreak, two mpox emergencies since 2022 and an Andes hantavirus outbreak have all required multinational responses. H5N1 is still infecting farm animals and wildlife, and climate change and biodiversity loss are driving new threats. Which political leaders will now step forward to turn that urgency into policy change and investment in countries and regions?”
In a vote today in the General Assembly, 153 countries adopted the declaration, and just three voted against, with two abstentions.
The declaration recognises that the world is still insufficiently prepared for the next pandemic threat and references core areas that must be addressed. It underlines the importance of the International Health Regulations and the Pandemic Agreement, and the need to conclude the Agreement’s Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) Annex.
It recognises the value of a One Health approach and prevention at source by tackling the drivers of outbreaks. It calls for prioritising equity and promoting access to vaccines, tests and treatments, and for such tools to be available within the first 100 days of a pandemic threat. It acknowledges an estimated US$15 billion annual gap in preparedness financing, the work of the Pandemic Fund, and the limits of a fragmented and under-funded financing system.
But the political declaration contains few concrete, measurable or time-bound commitments. The Friends now challenge all Member States to set ambitious, time-bound targets to ensure that we are truly able to prevent, prepare for, and respond to health emergencies and pandemic threats.
“It’s almost seven years since COVID-19 emerged and caused worldwide devastation to lives and economies. Action to ensure that this does not happen again is still too slow and not concrete or ambitious enough,” said the Right Honourable Helen Clark, Co-Chair of The Independent Panel, and a member of the Elders, both co-convenors of the Friends.
“Countries can and must do better, and work together with the urgency pandemic threats demand. This means finding a way through the impasse to agree the PABS Annex by May. In the meantime, it is vital to implement provisions of the Pandemic Agreement. Delays will only increase our collective risks.”
The Friends welcome the decision to review collective progress against the declaration in around two years’ time during the 83rd session of the General Assembly. The co-convenors and members of the Friends will hold countries accountable for real progress against the gaps the declaration lays out, and for bringing the commitments on paper to life. Progress must include:
- The Pandemic Agreement entering into force
- All countries having multisectoral plans for PPPR
- Successful mechanisms to ensure sustained, sufficient, and reliable preparedness and surge financing
- Measurable progress on investments in research, development and manufacturing of pandemic and outbreak tools in every region
The Friends thank the co-facilitators – Armenia and Rwanda – the President of the General Assembly, the World Health Organization, and all Member States who voted for the declaration.
End.
About the Friends of the PPPR HLM:
Friends of the PPPR HLM is an informal, time-limited platform for organisations working to support progress in pandemic PPR and specifically working to secure a strong political declaration from the 2026 HLM that contains measurable commitments. It is co-convened by The Elders, FOUR PAWS, The Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, and Resilience Action Network International (rani).
