WHO and Peking University strengthen collaboration to advance health emergency preparedness

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The World Health Organization (WHO) and China's Peking University have entered into a two-year project collaboration agreement to strengthen global health emergency preparedness through research, training and innovative analytical approaches.

The collaboration, led by WHO's Department of Health Emergency Preparedness through its Risk Analytics and Action Reviews (RAR) Unit and Peking University's Institute for Global Health, will support efforts to strengthen prevention, preparedness, response and resilience for health emergencies.

The agreement aligns with WHO's Fourteenth General Programme of Work and contributes to global efforts to improve preparedness capacities and support evidence-informed decision-making.

Under the agreement, WHO and Peking University will collaborate in three key areas:

• conducting operational and implementation research on health emergency preparedness;
• developing and delivering training on WHO preparedness tools and approaches, including the WHO benchmarks for strengthening health emergency capacities, simulation exercises (SimEx), after-action reviews (AARs) and Dynamic Preparedness Metrics (DPM); and
• developing methodologies to assess investments in preparedness and to measure outcome and impact.

The partnership builds on Peking University's longstanding engagement in global health research and public health capacity development. The university has been designated as a WHO Collaborating Centre in a number of areas, including universal health coverage.

Through this collaboration, WHO and Peking University aim to generate practical evidence and support preparedness efforts. The agreement will run from 1 August 2026 to 31 July 2028, with the possibility of extension by mutual agreement.