Pandemic treaty and disease X

Source-This post on pandemic treaty has been created based on the article “The pandemic treaty can help the world brace for Disease X: WHO Director-General” published in “Down to Earth” on 24 January 2024.

Why in the news?

The World Health Organization (WHO) is urging its member nations to sign a pandemic treaty to strengthen global preparedness for future health crises.

What is Pandemic treaty?

Origin-In March 2021, a group of world leaders announced an initiative for a new treaty on pandemic preparedness and response.
This initiative was taken to the World Health Organization (WHO) and will be negotiated, drafted, and debated by a newly-established Intergovernmental Negotiation Body.
Objective-
1) to foster an all government and all society approach, strengthening national, regional and global capacities and resilience to future pandemics.
2) to enhance international co-operation in data-sharing, research and local, regional and global production and distribution of medical and public health counter-measures such as vaccines, medicines, diagnostics and personal protective equipment.
3) The deadline for this agreement is set for the 77th World Health Assembly in May 2024.

What are its principal components?

1) Increased global cooperation
2) Strengthening of health systems
3) Investment in research and development
4) Transparency in information sharing
5) Establishment of a Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing System (PABS) under the WHO
6) Address gender disparities in the healthcare workforce.

About disease X

1) It is a hypothetical pathogen or threat that may cause a major pandemic in future.
2) It could be a new agent, a virus, a bacterium, or a fungus without any known treatment.
3) The disease could be any of the 25 families of viruses that have the capability to cause illness in people.
4) Disease X was included in the WHO’s updated Blueprint list of diseases back in 2018.
5)Disease X could be 20 times more deadly than SARS-Covid virus that caused pandemic recently.
6) It is an illness which is currently unknown but could pose a serious microbial threat to humans in the future.

WHO’s initiatives to prepare for future pandemic

1)  World Bank’s pandemic fund-This get funds from multinational development banks, G20 countries, WHO, and civil society to strengthen health systems in low- and middle-income countries.
2) Financial Intermediary Fund for Pandemic Preparedness and Response-This was established in 2022 to cover early warning surveillance systems for zoonotic diseases, laboratories, and emergency communication.
3) mRNA technology transfer hub– It was created in June 2021 to increase mRNA vaccine production locally in developing countries.
4) WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence-The hub is developing a research and development agenda that bridges the gap between universities and public health institutions.
5) WHO BioHub System-This enables the sharing of viruses and pathogens globally.

Note-Zoonotic disease-These are infections that spread between people and animals. These infections are caused by germs, such as viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi

UPSC SYLLABUS-Science&technology.