Resilient and Scalable MCM Ecosystem: WHO Coordination Meeting for Advancing Timely and Equitable Access

The World Health Organization is convening representatives from regional entities on 12 – 13 March 2024 for an in-person meeting for a Resilient and Scalable MCM Ecosystem: Regional Entities Coordination Meeting for Advancing Timely and Equitable Access to Medical Countermeasures Against Pandemic Threats.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted collective vulnerabilities and the need to strengthen the international community’s preparedness to future pandemics.

The WHO-led interim coordination mechanism aims to enhance collaboration for timely and equitable access to medical countermeasures (MCM) against pandemic threats, through a network-of-networks approach (i-MCM-Net) by leveraging existing networks in the global MCM ecosystem, without prejudging or precluding INB and IHR discussions, while awaiting the finalization of the INB deliberations.

The current focus of the i-MCM-Net is to understand how ready the world is in terms of equitable access to MCMs, should a new pandemic threat emerge. Including to identify gaps and potential priority actions to improve readiness.

With a view to enhance coherence and foster synergies, this meeting will provide an opportunity for the i-MCM-Net to provide an update on the analysis underway around Pandemic Influenza, Novel Coronavirus and Disease X and to hear insights and perspectives on the analysis.

Expected outcomes:

• Establish cross-regional level communication channels and start an ongoing conversation among regional entities to improve collaboration for timely and fair access to MCM against pandemics.
• Contribute input and feedback on the initial mapping of MCM (the i-MCM-Net mapping report), which will be further refined by May 2024.
• Provide input for a practical framework ensuring informed procedures for developing, producing, accessing, allocating, and deploying MCMs against pandemic threats.

Please visit the WHO’s Resilient and Scalable MCM Ecosystem: Regional Entities Coordination Meeting for Advancing Timely and Equitable Access to Medical Countermeasures Against Pandemic Threats website for more information.