Consensus reached for year-end WHO talks on pandemic treaty - South Africa

GENEVA - South Africa said on Tuesday that consensus had been reached to hold a special ministerial session of the World Health Organization (WHO) at the end of the year to consider negotiating a new international treaty on pandemic preparedness.

The WHO, whose handling of the COVID-19 pandemic is under scrutiny, has endorsed a proposal, initially made by the European Union, to negotiate a global treaty as a way to ensure countries' political commitment to fighting outbreaks of new or particularly dangerous diseases. The WHO's World Health Assembly will meet from Nov. 29 to Dec. 1.