Declaration to 148th Board of Executives by the Chair of the Review Committee on the management of International Health Regulations (2005) during the ongoing COVID-19 Situation  

President of the Robert Koch Institute, Germany  

Professor Lothar H. Wieler,  

We welcome you once again with an update on the steps taken by the Review Committee on the operations of International Health Regulations during this COVID-19.  

This Committee was summoned by the Director-General on September 8th 2020, in regards with the World Health Assembly Resolution. Committee is mainly composed of experts with a wide range of proficiencies and with adequate gender and geographical representation.  

Our commission is to approve the working of the International Health Regulations (2005) during this COVID-19 reaction and the status of usage of the significant proposals of previous IHR Review Committee and to make specialised suggestions and any changes to the Director-General.  

We get together for 16 closed meetings so far, and we will continue to work through three sub-groups: planning, alert, and response. This is a great opportunity to restate my thankfulness to our three subgroup leads. 5 open meetings are called on, as we provided updates and listened to the submissions and questions raised by Member of States, international and non-governmental agencies and organisations in professional relation to WHO. Open meetings continue to be attended by many designated representatives.  

Our progress was reported to the 73rd World Health Assembly on November 9th, and I continue to interact with the Co-Chairs of the Independent Panel regularly for the readiness and response for the pandemic with the Independent Oversight Advisory Committee.  

Let us elaborate on the substance of our work. I would like to invite you to read our Interim Progress Report. It briefs our preliminary researches till December 2020, various discussions, interviews and the review of a wealth of documentation.