By Muhammad Amaan
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said its Executive Board has directed the agency to convene discussions on reforming the global health architecture.
The Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, disclosed this on Wednesday during an online media conference on global health issues.
Ghebreyesus said that it was vital that all global health bodies work together to leverage their comparative advantage, avoid overlaps and duplication, and deliver value and results for the countries and people they serve.
According to him, the board also considered proposals for reforming the governance of WHO, and the notification of withdrawal from WHO of Argentina and the United States of America, which the World Health Assembly would consider at its meeting in May.
The WHO boss said that in 2013, the organisation and a coalition of partners established a stockpile of cholera vaccines for two purposes.
He said that it was basically to conduct reactive vaccination campaigns in response to outbreaks; and preventive campaigns in areas at risk of outbreaks, to stop them before they happen.
“Since 2021, the world has experienced a significant increase in cholera outbreaks, cases and deaths.
“In 2025 alone, more than 600,000 cases and 7,600 deaths were reported from 33 countries.
“This increase put heavy demand on the stockpile, which meant that preventive campaigns had to be stopped to ensure enough vaccines were available for reactive campaigns,” Ghebreyesus said.
According to him, following sustained efforts by manufacturers and partners, the annual global supply of oral cholera vaccine has now doubled, from 35 million doses in 2022 to nearly 70 million doses in 2025.
“Thanks to this increase, we have now been able to resume preventive vaccination campaigns against cholera after more than three years.
“This is important because cholera is a highly contagious disease that can spread rapidly in areas with poor sanitation and limited access to clean water.
“The resumption of preventive campaigns will help protect vulnerable populations and reduce the risk of outbreaks,” he said.
Ghebreyesus also said that the increased supply of vaccines was as a result of collaboration between manufacturers, WHO, and other partners.
“The goal is to continue increasing the global supply of cholera vaccines to meet growing demand and prevent future outbreaks,” he said.
On cataract, Ghebreyesus said it was the most common cause of blindness globally, and a leading cause of vision impairment, affecting more than 94 million people.
According to him, in addition to impaired vision and blindness, cataract can contribute to reduced mobility, unemployment, social isolation, depression and anxiety.
“Cataract is a major public health problem with a simple, cost-effective solution: it can be resolved with a 15-minute procedure, providing immediate and lasting restoration of sight.
“Cataract surgery is life-transforming, giving the gift of sight to people who had lost it, and reopening a world that had closed,” he said.
Ghebreyesus said that in 2021, the World Health Assembly (WHA) adopted a global target to increase access to effective cataract surgery by 30 percentages points by 2030.
He said that many countries have made impressive progress, including Bhutan, Cambodia, Nepal and Qatar.
“However, globally, half of all people who need cataract surgery still don’t have access to it, according to new research involving WHO published today in The Lancet Global Health.
“In Africa, three-in-four people with cataract lack access, and in all regions, women are disproportionately affected,” he said.
According to him, the research estimates that coverage will increase by 8.4 percentage points by 2030, less than one third of the pace needed to reach the 2030 target.
He urged governments, partners and donors to invest in the cost-effective and life-changing intervention, to prevent blindness and give people back the gift of sight.
“The new research published on Wednesday was led by the International Centre for Eye Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, which is in the process of becoming a WHO Collaborating Centre.
“It is an example of the valuable contribution that WHO’s network of over 800 collaborating centres can make to research and global health,” he said
