The European Commission’s EU Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) and the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) are stepping up their cooperation on medical countermeasures to improve prevention, preparedness and response to serious cross-border health threats, the Commission announced on Friday 27 October.
Under this working agreement, HERA and AMED will exchange information on advanced research and the development of medical countermeasures. They will also identify potential areas and projects for close collaboration, for example on priority pathogens of interest to both parties. HERA and AMED will meet regularly and work together on future priorities.
This working agreement will be implemented for an initial period of three years, with the possibility of extension.
This initiative is in line with the objectives of the EU’s global health strategy and the Commission’s desire to strengthen global cooperation to tackle global health threats.
The Covid-19 pandemic demonstrated the need for international cooperation to prevent, combat and contain serious cross-border health threats. Collaboration on preparedness and response to infectious disease emergencies is of joint interest at international level. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)