- This event has passed.
Opening of the 76th World Health Assembly
At the Palais des Nations, Alain Berset opens the 76th World Health Assembly on behalf of the host country. The WHO is 75 years old; on 5 May, it declared the end of Covid-19 as a public health emergency of international concern. Theme of the Assembly: “WHO at 75: saving lives, driving health for all”.
He recalls the organisation’s successes, from the eradication of smallpox to the retreat of polio, and its failures. He supports the first increase in assessed contributions, the negotiation of an international instrument on pandemic prevention and the revision of the International Health Regulations. He presents the Health for Peace initiative, led with the Sultanate of Oman. He quotes Saint-Exupéry: “It is not a matter of foreseeing the future but of making it possible.”
The same Assembly designates Switzerland to sit on the WHO Executive Board from May 2023 to May 2026. In the late afternoon, Switzerland’s traditional reception at WHO headquarters also celebrates the organisation’s 75th anniversary, with Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and former Director-General Gro Harlem Brundtland.
Speeches on this site
- Ouverture de la 76e Assemblée mondiale de la santé (in French, French-language page)
Sources