73rd Session of World Health Assembly Held VirtuallyThe World Health Assembly (WHA), the decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO) convened on May 18 and 19. Under normal circumstances, the WHA convenes over a period of three weeks and is "attended by delegations from all WHO Member States and focuses on a specific health agenda prepared by the Executive Board. The main functions of the World Health Assembly are to determine the policies of the Organization, appoint the Director-General, supervise financial policies, and review and approve the proposed program budget. The Health Assembly is held annually in Geneva, Switzerland." Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's assembly was held virtually over two days. The provisional WHA agenda released on April 6 was as follows: 1. Opening of the Health Assembly 1.1 Appointment of the Committee on Credentials 1.2 Election of the President 1.3 Election of the five Vice-Presidents, the Chairs of the main committees, and establishment of the General Committee 1.4 Adoption of the agenda and allocation of items to the main committees 2. Report of the Executive Board on its 145th and 146th session 3. Address by Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General 4. Invited speaker(s) 5. Admission of new Members and Associate Members [if any] 6. Executive Board: election 7. Awards 8. Reports of the main committees 9. Closure of the Health Assembly Added to this agenda, was "COVID-19 Response" a draft resolution calling for an "impartial" and "independent" review of the WHO's actions regarding the pandemic -- sponsored by 62 countries -- including Canada, but not the United States. A supplementary agenda item was also proposed by several countries, that Taiwan be invited to participate in the WHA as an observer, status which it had from 2009-2016. On May 19, the draft resolution was brought forward by the European Union and moved by more than 100 countries and endorsed by the WHA. It does not single out any country but reiterates the responsibilities of the WHO to its member countries and the need for all national governments to be accountable to their citizens and residents by providing the means to safeguard public health and safety, as well as the need for international cooperation to overcome the pandemic. Regarding the origin of the novel coronavirus, a matter for which the U.S., Canada and others have been trying to scapegoat China, it simply calls on the WHO Director-General to continue "to work closely with the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and countries, as part of the One-Health Approach to identify the zoonotic source of the virus and the route of introduction to the human population, including the possible role of intermediate hosts, including through efforts such as scientific and collaborative field missions, which will enable targeted interventions and a research agenda to reduce the risk of similar events as well as to provide guidance on how to prevent SARS-COV2 infection in animals and humans and prevent the establishment of new zoonotic reservoirs, as well as to reduce further risks of emergence and transmission of zoonotic diseases." The draft resolution further calls on the WHO Director-General to "Initiate, at the earliest appropriate moment, and in consultation with Member States, a stepwise process of impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation, including using existing mechanisms, as appropriate, to review experience gained and lessons learned from the WHO-coordinated international health response to COVID-19." In his closing remarks, Dr. Tedros thanked Member States "for adopting the resolution, which calls for an independent and comprehensive evaluation of the international response -- including, but not limited to, WHO's performance. "As I said yesterday, I will initiate such an evaluation at the earliest appropriate moment. "We welcome any initiative to strengthen global health security, and to strengthen WHO, and to be more safe. "As always, WHO remains fully committed to transparency, accountability and continuous improvement. We want accountability more than anyone." He stated that the WHO would continue to work with all countries and fulfill its mandate to provide all countries with the assistance required during the pandemic. In April, President Trump conditionally withdrew U.S. funding for the WHO, in the order of $500 million per year, accusing it of failing in its basic duty in its response to the coronavirus, as part of U.S. attempts to shift the blame for the COVID-19 crisis in the U.S. on to others. Trump reiterated this blackmail in a letter sent to Dr. Tedros on May 18, in which he threatened to permanently halt funding to the WHO, saying: "My Administration has already started discussions with you on how to reform the organization. But action is needed quickly. We do not have time to waste. That is why it is my duty, as President of the United States, to inform you that, if the World Health Organization does not commit to major substantive improvements within the next 30 days, I will make my temporary freeze of United States funding to the World Health Organization permanent and reconsider our membership in the organization. I cannot allow American taxpayer dollars to continue to finance an organization that, in its present state, is so clearly not serving America's interests." In contrast, while Trump did not deign to address the WHA in person, Chinese President Xi Jinping did so by videoconference on May 18. In his remarks, Xi backed global efforts to overcome the pandemic and the leadership role of the WHO. He stated, "China stands for the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind. China takes it as its responsibility to ensure not just the life and health of its own citizens, but also global public health. For the sake of boosting international cooperation against COVID-19, I would like to announce the following: "- China will provide U.S.$2 billion over two years to help with COVID-19 response and with economic and social development in affected countries, especially developing countries. "- China will work with the UN to set up a global humanitarian response depot and hub in China, ensure the operation of anti-epidemic supply chains and foster 'green corridors' for fast-track transportation and customs clearance. "- China will establish a cooperation mechanism for its hospitals to pair up with 30 African hospitals and accelerate the building of the Africa [Centres for Disease Control] headquarters to help the continent ramp up its disease preparedness and control capacity. "- COVID-19 vaccine development and deployment in China, when available, will be made a global public good. This will be China's contribution to ensuring vaccine accessibility and affordability in developing countries. "- China will work with other G20 members to implement the Debt Service Suspension Initiative for the poorest countries. China is also ready to work with the international community to bolster support for the hardest-hit countries under the greatest strain of debt service, so that they could tide over the current difficulties."
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