President Paul Kagame on Tuesday said he held ‘fruitful’ discussions at the virtual roundtable of the Independent Panel on Pandemic Preparedness and Response (IPPPR), in which he said very good points to be acted on were made. Kagame commended co-chairs of the meeting, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Helen Clark for organizing the meeting that was attended by various dignitaries. Sirleaf is the former President of Liberia while Clark is a former Prime Minister of New Zealand and has also previously worked as administrator of United Nations Development Programme. “Fruitful discussion today at the virtual roundtable,” he said, “Very good points were made – to be acted upon. We look forward to supporting IPPPRs final report later this month.” Last year, the World Health Organisation established IPPPR to, among others, provide an evidence-based path for the future, grounded in lessons of the present and the past to ensure countries and global institutions, including WHO, effectively address health threats. The body, members said, will provide a fresh assessment of the challenges ahead, based on insights and lessons learned from the health response to Covid-19 as coordinated by WHO as well as previous health emergencies. According to WHO’s statement, IPPPR is expected to present a report of the current pandemic status during the 74th World Health Assembly in this Month. Among the global leaders at the summit include Sahle-work Zewde, President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa and Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand among others.
