Esteemed Board Members, dear colleagues and friends,
I am delighted to join you today for this first meeting of the renewed Global Preparedness Monitoring Board.
I thank our continuing members: Jeremy, Victor, Chris, Henrietta, Ilona and Daniel;
And I also welcome our new Members: Joy, Palitha, Ibrahim, Bente, Maha, Bience, Jayati, Naoko, Mark, Susana, Matthew and Feng.
I'm also very pleased to welcome the interim co-chair Jeremy Farrar and co-chair Joy Phumaphi.
Joy will co-Chair the Board until the end of its current term. Jeremy will act as co-Chair on an interim basis as the search for a second co-Chair continues.
I am also delighted to be here with Juan Pablo Uribe, on behalf of our co-convenor, the World Bank.
Since it was established in 2018, the GPMB has contributed an independent and authoritative appraisal of the world's preparedness.
In its first report, just a few months before the first cases of COVID-19 were reported, the GPMB described the "cycle of panic and neglect" that has characterised the global response to epidemics and pandemics.
And it warned that despite the lessons of SARS, the H1N1 pandemic, the West African Ebola epidemic and other crises, the world remained unprepared for a pandemic of a respiratory pathogen that could kill millions.
Throughout the pandemic, the GPMB has highlighted gaps and key actions for preparedness needed to break that cycle. The Board has called for the world's leaders to take urgent action.
The experience of COVID-19 has also taught us all important lessons about preparedness
The mistrust caused by an inequitable COVID-19 response has demonstrated the importance of transparency and inclusivity.
A strong independent monitoring mechanism is needed to provide a clear perspective.
The COVID-19 pandemic underscored that preparedness must go far beyond the health sector.
Just as major health emergencies impact economies, societies, transport, environment and many other sectors, so too, must those sectors work together to prepare for global crises.
Reflecting these lessons, this new iteration of the GPMB has been selected to bring increased diversity, breadth of expertise, and independence.
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This new Board is composed of experts in human rights, diplomacy, economics, law, veterinary epidemiology, environment, gender, global health, and development.
Your first meeting is occurring at a critical time, as WHO, the World Bank, our Member States and others have come together to put in place a stronger, more comprehensive global health architecture for health emergency preparedness and response.
Your expertise and advocacy will play a crucial role in making sure this is done with sufficient scale and ambition, and that it results in an architecture that is more effective and sustainable, and more equitable and inclusive.
The GPMB's role as an independent watchdog will be essential to ensure that the new global architecture lives up to its promise.
Thank you all once again for taking on this critical mission.
I look forward to working with you to ensure the lessons of COVID-19 are learned, and that together we support countries and institutions including WHO to build a safer world.
I thank you.
