Geneva – The World Health Organization (WHO) will use the European Union’s digital COVID pass as a basis for a global health certification system, according to a new partnership deal agreed Monday (5).
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and EU health commissioner Stella Kyriakides signed what they described as a “landmark” agreement in Geneva.
“The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the value of digital health solutions in facilitating access to health services,” Tedros said at the signing ceremony.
He said the EU’s COVID certificate would now be transformed into “a global public good”, as a first step in the creation of a global digital health certification network.
The network will expand to include things like digitised international routine vaccination cards, he said.
It will be aimed to help protect people from health threats, including possible future pandemics, and facilitate global mobility, the WHO and the EU said in a statement.
This “will be an important part of our efforts to strengthen health systems and to support our member states to prepare better for the next epidemic or pandemic,” Tedros said.
“The network could also play a crucial role in cross-border humanitarian situations by ensuring people have access to their health records and credentials as they move across borders due to conflict, the climate crisis and other emergencies.”
The EU COVID certificate, made available on paper or digitally, has been used by travellers moving around inside the bloc to show their COVID vaccination or test status.
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