Influenza and other respiratory pathogens with pandemic potential continue to pose significant health risks worldwide. To strengthen regional preparedness and response, Member States in the WHO South-East Asia Region (SEAR) are working together to develop a comprehensive roadmap for pandemic readiness, with a focus on influenza, COVID-19 and other respiratory threats. This effort is guided by the Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats (PRET) initiative, the South-East Asia Regional Strategic Roadmap on health security and health system resilience for emergencies and supported by the Pandemic Preparedness (PIP) Framework Partnership Contribution (PC) funds.
Stakeholder consultation on the draft roadmap
During the final two days of the annual regional meeting on PIP PC and PRET Implementation in Colombo, participants from Member States, WHO partner agencies, multidisciplinary technical experts, and WHO country, regional and headquarters offices, reviewed the draft regional roadmap and the strategic action framework for pandemic preparedness and response focusing influenza, COVID-19 and other respiratory threats for 2026–2031. This consultation is a part of the current SEARO PIP PC biennial workplan and contributes to the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework: Partnership Contribution High-Level Implementation Plan III 2024–2030 (HLIP-III) policy and planning output.
Based on the principles of equity, inclusivity, multisectoral collaboration, and sustainability, the draft roadmap provides a coherent framework for integrated respiratory pathogen pandemic planning using the PRET approach. The draft SEAR roadmap supports planning for pandemic preparedness and response beyond a pathogen-specific focus towards a more integrated, “mode of transmission” approach, while maintaining pathogen-specific readiness through updated contingency plans for national influenza pandemic preparedness. The long-term goal of this roadmap is to ensure that every Member State in SEAR maintains an operational, regularly tested, and updated national broad respiratory pathogen pandemic plan by 2031.
Key outcomes of the consultation
The consultation created a shared vision for strong respiratory pathogen pandemic preparedness in the region, building on national progress, addressing gaps, and leveraging opportunities. Discussions prioritized four thematic areas for the WHO SEARO to consider when finalizing the roadmap:
- Aligning with regional and global health security frameworks
- Including effective and feasible governance and financing mechanisms
- Embedding coordinated and scalable actions across relevant sectors
- Prioritizing enhancement of core capacities tailored to SEAR's multifaceted contexts
Through collective work, participants enriched the roadmap with strategic insights, emphasizing practicality, sustainability, equity, resilience, and aligning with existing health security monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for tracking progress. By emphasizing the need for embedding a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach with a community protection focus, participants enabled the roadmap to position a populous and complex South-East Asia Region to plan for more effective response to future respiratory pathogen pandemics, protecting both lives and livelihoods.
"This roadmap reflects our shared commitment to building a more resilient South-East Asia through both pathogen-agnostic and pathogen-specific preparedness planning for respiratory threats with pandemic potential. The adoption of the PRET approach marks a decisive regional strategy. It builds on over a decade of experience, expertise, infrastructure, and workforce development in influenza pandemic preparedness. This foundation is now being leveraged to develop dynamic systems, adaptable tools, a skilled workforce, and robust alert mechanisms to effectively respond to emerging respiratory threats."
- Dr Pushpa R Wijesinghe, Programme Area Manager, Infectious Hazard Management, Health Emergencies Programme, WHO/SEARO
Next Steps
Feedback from the consultation will be incorporated into the final version of the regional roadmap and action framework. The approved roadmap is expected to be released at the Seventy-ninth Session of the South-East Asia Regional Committee in 2026. Its implementation from 2026 will mark a significant step in the SEAR's PRET implementation journey, which began with the PRET Secretariat rollout in 2023.