WHO, EU Convene Global Partners on Pooled Procurement for Health Crises

DG HERA Director-General Florika Fink-Hooijer stressed that procurement systems must be strengthened during “peacetime” to ensure faster and more equitable access during emergencies.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Commission’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (DG HERA) have brought together leading regional health bodies in Brussels to strengthen cooperation on pooled procurement of medical countermeasures for future health emergencies.

The 13 January 2026 workshop focused on improving joint purchasing mechanisms for vaccines, diagnostics and treatments — a key lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent outbreaks such as mpox.

Strengthening Procurement Before the Next Crisis

DG HERA Director-General Florika Fink-Hooijer stressed that procurement systems must be strengthened during “peacetime” to ensure faster and more equitable access during emergencies.

Health threats, she noted, do not respect borders — making cross-regional cooperation essential.

The meeting builds on discussions first identified as a priority at a March 2024 gathering of the interim Medical Countermeasures Network (i-MCM-Net), which called for deeper coordination on pooled procurement strategies.

Broad Regional Participation

Participants represented major regional procurement and health coordination platforms, including:

• Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Regional Revolving Funds

• Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC)

• ASEAN Vaccine Security and Self-Reliance initiative partners, including Thailand’s National Vaccine Institute and the National University of Singapore

• European Commission services, including the Directorate-General for International Partnerships

The Regional Vaccine Manufacturing Collaborative attended as an observer.

The workshop allowed entities at different stages of development to exchange practical experience, identify shared challenges and discuss solutions.

Addressing Gaps in Global Coverage

Tim Nguyen, Head of WHO’s Medical Countermeasures Unit, highlighted the critical role regional procurement mechanisms play in ensuring equitable access during epidemics and pandemics.

However, he noted that current regional mechanisms cover only about half of the world’s countries, leaving approximately 100 countries, areas and territories without pooled procurement coverage.

This gap, he said, underscores the importance of global coordination to avoid leaving vulnerable populations behind.

Equity and Allocation at the Forefront

Santiago Cornejo, Executive Manager of PAHO’s Regional Revolving Funds, emphasized the need for a shared understanding of “equity” in allocating emergency medical countermeasures.

Clarifying how equity is defined and operationalized is central to strengthening pandemic preparedness and ensuring fair distribution during crises.

Lessons from COVID-19 and Mpox

Discussions reviewed hard-won lessons from crisis procurement during:

• The COVID-19 pandemic

• The mpox epidemic

Participants examined how pooled procurement mechanisms can be designed not only to respond rapidly during crises but also to function effectively during preparedness phases — aligning threat identification, research, manufacturing, procurement and deployment.

Supporting the Pandemic Agreement and EU Strategy

The workshop forms part of the technical priorities of the i-MCM-Net Secretariat, which coordinates multisectoral stakeholders to promote timely and equitable access to medical countermeasures until the WHO Pandemic Agreement enters into force.

It also supports implementation of the European Commission’s Medical Countermeasures Strategy, which adopts an end-to-end preparedness approach.

Next Steps in 2026

The meeting concluded with agreement on continued cooperation, including:

• Potential follow-up exchanges later in 2026

• Development of a working document capturing shared lessons

• Identification of possible principles for cross-regional collaboration

As global health systems prepare for future epidemics and pandemics, the Brussels workshop signals a growing push toward coordinated procurement — aimed at preventing the inequities that marked past crises.

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