Harare – The World Well being Group (WHO) is internet hosting an essential assembly in Zimbabwe from January 28 to 31, 2025, to debate learn how to higher put together for flu pandemics. This Regional Coordination Assembly for the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP) Framework: Partnership Contribution Excessive-Stage Implementation Plan III (HLIP III) will deliver collectively key representatives from 14 African international locations, together with Angola, Chad, Cabo Verde, Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome & Principe, South Africa, South Sudan, and Zimbabwe. Alongside these nation representatives, officers from WHO Nation Workplaces, the Regional Workplace, Headquarters, and the PIP Secretariat may even take part. The main target of the assembly is to evaluation the progress made within the first yr of HLIP III and to refine the implementation plans for the second yr. The members will work on reinforcing pandemic preparedness methods, which embrace strengthening laboratory capacities, bettering surveillance methods, and enhancing regulatory frameworks. Moreover, the assembly goals to optimize sources and foster collaboration amongst international locations to spice up influenza preparedness throughout the area. 

Africa faces quite a few well being challenges, equivalent to frequent illness outbreaks, underreporting, and restricted healthcare infrastructure. Influenza alone causes between 290,000 and 650,000 deaths globally every year, affecting tens of millions of individuals. These challenges spotlight the pressing want for enhanced preparedness and fast response methods. Latest world well being crises, just like the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2009 influenza pandemic, have uncovered vital gaps in well being methods. Past the human toll, influenza outbreaks pressure fragile well being methods, improve work absenteeism, elevate healthcare prices, and scale back productiveness. This makes proactive planning and collaboration important to successfully deal with these threats. 

The WHO’s Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP) Framework, established in 2011, goals to strengthen world surveillance and response capabilities, enhance entry to vaccines and coverings, and facilitate the sharing of influenza virus samples. HLIP III builds on the teachings discovered from earlier plans and focuses on 4 key areas to boost pandemic influenza preparedness. These areas embrace updating nationwide pandemic preparedness plans, strengthening laboratory and surveillance methods for early detection of influenza outbreaks, enhancing threat communication and neighborhood engagement, and bettering regulatory processes for well timed entry to vaccines, diagnostics, and antivirals. 

Via the Partnership Contribution (PC) funds, WHO helps 14 African international locations, together with Zimbabwe, in constructing resilient well being methods. This assist helps enhance laboratories, surveillance, and pandemic preparedness plans, making these international locations higher outfitted to deal with future well being threats. The HLIP III offers vital assist to boost influenza preparedness by strengthening laboratory capacities, bettering surveillance methods, and growing nationwide pandemic preparedness plans. By working collectively, WHO goals to assist African international locations turn out to be extra resilient and higher ready to deal with public well being emergencies. The PIP Framework and HLIP III supply important instruments to mitigate the impression of future influenza pandemics and different rising well being threats. Via collaborative efforts, WHO strives to enhance the preparedness and resilience of member states within the WHO AFRO area in opposition to public well being emergencies.