The GPMB met on 23-24 February 2023 at the World Health Organization (WHO), Geneva, Switzerland. The meeting was chaired by GPMB Co-Chair Joy Phumaphi and GPMB Interim Co-Chair Bente Angell-Hansen.
1. Welcome and introductions
The Co-Chairs welcomed Board members to the first in-person Board meeting held since 2019. They provided an overview of the meeting agenda, programme of work, and expected outcomes.
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of WHO, thanked Board members for their dedication, emphasizing that the GPMB’s engagement in the High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response in September would be crucial to its success, and assured the Board of the Co-convenors’ ongoing support.
2. Review of progress of GPMB Calls to Action (Preliminary discussion)
The Secretariat presented a preliminary review of progress on GPMB calls to action, including: a summary of GPMB calls to action, an overview of ongoing preparedness reform processes, the three tests of preparedness reforms outlined in the GPMB Manifesto, and proposed specific questions for discussion relevant to each reform process. The Board was invited to consider progress made towards the calls to action and further ways in which the strength of the reforms could be assessed, in addition to the indicators proposed in the Manifesto.
The Board agreed on the need to clarify GPMB’s role in supporting coherence between the processes, and to prioritize specific elements of each process for advocacy, especially in monitoring and accountability. The Board needs to determine which elements of the Pandemic Accord to focus on based on its priorities, and to further engage with the World Bank on the provision of funding for global common goods.
3. Review of progress of GPMB Calls to Action: Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB), Working Group on International Health Regulations (IHR) amendments, and Financing Preparedness
The GPMB held separate meetings with the following guests, who were invited to provide an overview of the process and progress of the key reform initiatives for which they were responsible:
- Mr Roland Driece, Co-Chair, INB;
- Dr Abdullah Assiri and Dr Ashley Bloomfield, Co-Chairs of the Working Group on IHR amendments;
- Dr Mamta Murthi, Vice President for Human Development, World Bank Group, and Ms Priya Basu, Executive Head, Pandemic Fund Secretariat, World Bank Group.
Following these meetings, the Board discussed steps to accelerate progress and strengthen the outcomes of the reform initiatives, informed by earlier discussions with the guests. It was agreed that the Board needs to clarify GPMB’s role in supporting coherence between these processes, and to prioritize specific elements of each process for advocacy, especially in monitoring and accountability.
4. Preparations for the UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting (HLM) on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response (PPPR)
The Secretariat presented on the background to the HLM and the GPMB’s previous calls for a UN Summit on health emergency preparedness and response. The secretariat also presented a draft of GPMB expectations and key asks of the HLM on PPPR, based on discussions in previous Board meetings, and proposed a plan for communications and advocacy activities.
The Board discussed the challenge of maintaining momentum and attention to PPPR, which will make selection of priorities and targeted advocacy essential. The GPMB observed there is an opportunity to generate synergy between the key themes of coherence, leadership and equity, building on the Monitoring Framework and the development of proposals for a monitoring and accountability architecture for global health emergency preparedness that will be published in 2023. It was agreed that the Board will need to develop strong messages that reflect GPMB’s independent monitoring mandate, as well as an advocacy strategy that is sensitive to current geopolitical challenges. It was agreed that funding of pandemic preparedness must be a key advocacy target. The messaging should highlight the role of GPMB in making the first call for a UN Summit and emphasize the central role of WHO in PPPR.
5. GPMB Monitoring Framework: proposed priorities and report development process for 2023
The Secretariat presented the draft Monitoring Framework, together with an overview of the proposed priorities and proposed consultation & development process for the 2023 GPMB report on the State of the World’s Preparedness.
The Board agreed that the Monitoring Framework should be used to support each reform process, and that the priorities for 2023 should be consolidated and clustered around the priorities of the GPMB Manifesto, i.e. equity, leadership & accountability, and coherence. The Board decided that the Monitoring Framework would be shared as a work in progress and further developed and implemented through a consultative process. The consultative process should include experts identified from WHO Collaborating Centres and other expert bodies from international organizations, including the World Bank, WOAH, and others, to strengthen the data/indicators, and to provide real life illustrations. The Board highlighted the GPMB’s commitment to a sustainable expert process for evidence collection, to maximize input from technical experts, and to ensure engagement with policymakers.
6. GPMB proposal for a monitoring and accountability architecture of global health emergency preparedness
The Secretariat presented the outline of a draft proposal for a monitoring and accountability architecture of global health emergency preparedness.
Board members noted that the timeline for this proposal was ambitious and proposed that the first step should be to complete a mapping of the current architecture. The Board reiterated the importance of alignment between the architecture proposal and the Monitoring Framework, demonstrating how the two complement each other to strengthen monitoring and accountability for PPPR.
7. Close of meeting
Board members reflected on their experiences of the meeting. The Co-Chairs expressed thanks to all participants for their energy and commitment, and to WHO for hosting the meeting. The Co-Chair noted the next Board meeting will be held virtually on 13 April 2023.