The pandemic treaty can help the world brace for Disease X: WHO Director-General

COVID-19 was the first ‘Disease X’ and it may happen again, warned the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. He spoke during a recent discussion titled Preparing for Disease X, hosted by the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos.

“However, one unfortunate possibility is that COVID-19 and other recent pandemics might have been milder versions of what will eventually be the most prominent Disease X,” a 2021 paper published in the Cambridge University Press said.

‘Disease X’ represents an unknown disease that could cause a potential epidemic or pandemic, with an unprecedented impact on health infrastructure and mortality. Experts say that it is most likely to be a zoonotic disease with a ribonucleic acid (RNA) virus, having a far worse effect on mortality rates than the COVID-19 pandemic. RNA viruses have a high mutation rate. They are therefore highly infectious.

Ghebreyesus implied that a key way to tackle this head-on is through the pandemic agreement. This can bring all the experience, challenges faced by the world, and all the solutions onto one platform. “The agreement can help prepare us for the future in a better way because this is about a common enemy and without a shared response, starting from preparedness, we will face the same problem as COVID,’’ he said.

The deadline for the pandemic agreement is at the 77th World Health Assembly in May 2024. If this generation cannot do it as we are the lived community with first-hand experience, I don’t think the coming generation will do it. For our children’s and grandchildren’s sake, we should convert our lessons from the pandemic into something substantial, Ghebreyesus indicated.

Narrow national interests must not come in the way and influence the pandemic treaty negotiations as we speak, he indicated. Ghebreyesus added, “The key is the capacity we build in each and every country.”

On the panel of experts was Vice-chairperson of Apollo Hospitals, Preetha Reddy, who said that “Disease X is a clear and present danger.” She drew an analogy to the Indian infantry that prepares for war every day at the border with intense training. Reddy implied that healthcare workers and systems have to look at the future with the same urgency.

Tedros listed several initiatives underway by the WHO to prepare for the unfortunate event of a future pandemic. In terms of financial assistance, the World Bank’s pandemic fund has funds flowing in from multi-national development banks, G20 countries, WHO, and civil society to strengthen health systems in low- and middle-income countries.

Established in September 2022, the Financial Intermediary Fund for Pandemic Preparedness and Response aims to cover early warning surveillance systems for zoonotic diseases, laboratories, and emergency communication.

Tedros also mentioned that 15 African countries are participating along with countries representing every region in the mRNA technology transfer hub created in June 2021 to increase mRNA vaccine production locally. Vaccine hoarding in wealthy countries, and highly effective mRNA vaccines against COVID-19, led to the initiative of the mRNA technology transfer hub.

Tedros further said that through the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence, the groundwork for a safer world is being laid. The hub is developing a research and development agenda that bridges the gap between universities and public health institutions.

Another facility that will continue to work collaboratively in the post-pandemic phase is the WHO BioHub System, which enables the sharing of viruses and pathogens globally.

“The COVID-19 pandemic was not the first to wreak havoc on the world, and it will not be the last. Thus, we need to prepare for the next outbreak as soon as possible,” the aforementioned paper added.