Bold New Era for Pandemic Security

Only three years after its inauguration, the World Health Organization’s Berlin Hub is already supporting over 150 countries in detecting and responding to health threats more effectively.

“The Hub is ensuring that the most robust tools and analytics are available to enhance early threat detection and rapid response and support decision-makers around the world,” says Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director General.

Following the global COVID pandemic, the WHO set out to ensure that a potential future deadly virus could be handled with more efficiency on a worldwide scale. Various projects are in place, including a Collaborative Surveillance system that allows countries to share data and information, enabling any outbreak to be quickly detected and brought under control more effectively. The Hub has also established an International Pathogen Surveillance Network, which aims to equitably expand genomic surveillance globally, ensuring that even low- and middle-income countries have greater access to pre-outbreak monitoring. Furthermore, a cutting-edge platform will soon enable scientists and decision-makers to visualise potential disease transmission routes and simulate the impact of various countermeasures. The Berlin Hub is being regarded as an innovative system that relies on partnerships, collaboration, equity, and trust to ensure higher levels of global health security for all.