From Vision to Action: WHO and Global Partners Advance One Health Agenda

On World Health Day 2026, global leaders convened in France for a landmark One Health Summit, marking a decisive shift from commitment to implementation in addressing the world’s most pressing health challenges. Led by the World Health Organization (WHO) and supported by key international partners, the Summit reinforced a central message: human health, animal health, and environmental sustainability are inseparable, and must be addressed through coordinated, science-driven action.

This renewed urgency is rooted in growing global risks. Climate change, environmental degradation, food insecurity, and unsafe water systems are increasingly intersecting with public health threats. Scientific data shows that nearly 60 percent of infectious diseases in humans originate in animals, while approximately 75 percent of emerging diseases are zoonotic. The global impact of COVID-19—with millions of lives lost and economies disrupted—highlighted the consequences of fragmented systems and delayed responses, and underscored the need for a more integrated, preventive approach.

At the Summit, WHO and its Quadripartite partners—the Food and Agriculture Organization, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the World Organisation for Animal Health—announced four major initiatives designed to translate the One Health approach into practical outcomes at global and country levels.

The first is the establishment of a Global Network of One Health Institutions. This initiative aims to connect expertise across sectors and regions, enabling countries to better implement policies through technical support, training, and knowledge sharing. By strengthening collaboration between health, agriculture, and environmental systems, the network is expected to close persistent gaps between policy development and real-world delivery.

Second, the One Health High-Level Expert Panel will be expanded and its mandate extended, reinforcing the role of science in shaping global health priorities. The panel will guide research agendas, support implementation strategies, and ensure that advocacy efforts remain grounded in evidence. This move reflects a broader commitment to aligning policy decisions with scientific knowledge in an increasingly complex risk environment.

Third, WHO and partners, including the Institut Pasteur, launched a renewed global initiative to eliminate dog-mediated human rabies deaths by 2030. Despite being preventable, rabies continues to claim tens of thousands of lives each year, particularly among children in low-resource settings. This initiative emphasizes community-based surveillance, improved vaccination efforts, and stronger political commitment, while also serving as a model for broader disease prevention under the One Health framework.

The fourth initiative focuses on strengthening global coordination to address avian influenza. A new strategic framework was introduced to enhance surveillance, risk assessment, and response systems across countries. By aligning previously fragmented efforts, this approach aims to mitigate not only public health risks but also the wider impacts on food security, livelihoods, and biodiversity.

In addition to these initiatives, WHO will assume the chairmanship of the Quadripartite collaboration, taking on a more prominent leadership role in coordinating global One Health efforts. This transition is expected to streamline governance, improve accountability, and ensure that international commitments translate into measurable impact at the country level.

For health advocacy organizations, this moment represents a critical opportunity to bridge global policy and local action. The success of the One Health approach will depend on how effectively these initiatives are implemented within communities, particularly in regions facing high vulnerability to zoonotic diseases and environmental risks. Advocacy efforts must therefore focus on strengthening awareness, promoting cross-sector collaboration, and ensuring that governments remain accountable to their commitments.

Ultimately, the One Health Summit sends a clear and urgent message: preventing future health crises requires early, coordinated, and sustained action. As global health challenges become more interconnected, the path forward lies in collective responsibility, scientific integrity, and a shared commitment to protecting the health of people, animals, and the planet.

Source: WHO