Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the 73rd World Health Assembly was held virtually for the first time in its history.
The 73rd World Health Assembly was held briefly on 18 & 19 May. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was the first-ever to be held virtually and is expected to be reconvened later this year.
At the virtual Assembly delegates adopted a landmark resolution to bring the world together to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
The resolution, co-sponsored by more than 130 countries, was adopted by consensus.
It calls for the intensification of efforts to control the pandemic, and for equitable access to and fair distribution of all essential health technologies and products to combat the virus. It also calls for an independent and comprehensive evaluation of the global response, including, but not limited to, WHO’s performance.
As WHO convened ministers of health from almost every country in the world, the consistent message throughout the two-day meeting – including from the 14 heads of state participating in the opening and closing sessions – was that global unity is the most powerful tool to combat the outbreak. The resolution is a concrete manifestation of this call, and a roadmap for controlling the outbreak.
In his closing remarks, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHODirector-General, said: “COVID-19 has robbed us of people we love. It’s robbed us of lives and livelihoods; it’s shaken the foundations of our world; it threatens to tear at the fabric of international cooperation. But it’s also reminded us that for all our differences, we are one human race, and we are stronger together.”
