In March 2025, two old friends tightened their partnership to protect people's health around the world.
Switzerland and the World Health Organization (WHO) renewed their cooperation plan, committing to work together through 2028. The agreement was sealed on March 4 at the WHO Regional Office for Europe in Copenhagen, Denmark.
This was not Switzerland's first time at this table. Back in 2013, the country became the first high-income nation in all of WHO's European Region — a group covering 53 countries from Ireland to Uzbekistan — to set up a formal cooperation strategy with the organization. After more than a decade of working side by side, the two partners decided it was time to update their game plan.
"We have a long-standing and trusting partnership," the two sides said in a joint statement. "The renewed cooperation strategy confirms our shared commitment to global health security."
At the signing ceremony in Copenhagen, Barbara Schedler, Switzerland's Ambassador for Global Health, shook hands with Dr. Henri P. Kluge, WHO's Regional Director for Europe, as they agreed on the way forward.
The partnership covers a wide range of health priorities, from keeping tabs on disease outbreaks to preparing for pandemics and building stronger health systems in countries that need them most. Switzerland also plays a key role in WHO's BioHub system — a global network designed to share biological samples like viruses and bacteria safely between countries. The idea is simple but powerful: if scientists everywhere can study dangerous pathogens quickly, they can develop vaccines and tests faster, keeping everyone safer.
Switzerland's commitment matters beyond the numbers. As a wealthy nation with top-tier research institutions and a long tradition of international cooperation, its backing gives WHO credibility and resources. The fact that Switzerland has stuck with this partnership for more than a decade shows that global health works best when rich and poor countries share the load.