UNITED NATIONS: The WHO-appointed committee, mandated to review the global treaty governing responses to international health emergencies, will begin its work tomorrow.
WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus today said the review committee of the International Health Regulations would begin its work tomorrow and present the final report to the World Health Assembly in May 2021 and may be an interim report this November.
The review panel was set up by the WHO after it came under severe criticism from several quarters for its initial response to the Covid-19 pandemic with the US pulling out of the organisation, accusing it of going soft on China, where SARS-CoV2 virus originated.
“The review committee will evaluate the functioning of the IHR during the pandemic so far, and recommend any changes it believes are necessary,” the WHO chief said. It will review the convening of the Emergency Committee, the declaration of a public health emergency of international concern, the role and functioning of national IHR focal points, and will examine progress made in implementing the recommendations of previous International Health Regulations review committees.
Depending on the progress, the committee may present an interim progress report to the resumed World Health Assembly in November, and a final report to the Assembly in May, said Ghebreyesus. The IHR was last amended in 2005.