Good afternoon and thank you for joining us for this press conference with Commissioner Síkela.

So Commissioner will debrief you on today's adoption by the College of the communication on the Global health resilience initiatives,

so the Commissioner will give you a short presentation and then we'll be able to take a few questions on the topic of today,

and if time allows, we'll take some other topics.

If the Commissioner is ready, we can start with your presentation.

Well, thank you, good afternoon to all of you,

and I'm very pleased to be in the press room today to present the Global Health Resilience Initiative.

It was announced by the president in her State of the Union last September and has just been adopted by the College today. Why does this matter to us?

Given that the new cycle these days is not lacking crisis or urgencies,

I want to start exactly there.

The Hantavirus outbreak last week on a cruise ship in the Atlantic.

It was picked up because it reminded us all of our vulnerability when it comes to health.

We all remember the impact of COVID 19 on our lives.

The reality is that the frequency and intensity of disease outbreaks are increasing.

The Global Health Resilience Initiative is our answer to 3 hard truths. First, health threats do not respect borders.

A health crisis anywhere is a risk everywhere. Preparedness pays off. Investing now saves lives and money later. And third, dependency is really dangerous.

No country should rely on a handful of suppliers,

as health is no longer the preserve of doctors,

but is even weaponized for geopolitical purposes. So what is our plan?

Our plan is to turn risk into opportunity.

Through a focus on 5 priorities with 9 concrete actions, each being a piece of the resilience puzzle.

First, we need a more effective and less fragmented global health architecture.

There are too many players, too many overlapping mandates,

work at global level is ongoing and we want to make sure the ambition is high.

The EU is already driving this process and the Commission will further step up coordination with and between EU Member States as we pledge funding.

Second, we need to support strong country-led health systems.

That's the first line of defense and response.

If the system falters at national level, it can spread.

For our partners, it means more sovereignty and less dependency through sustainable financing and sharing expertise,

with a focus on primary health care.

Third Prevention, preparedness and response to global health threats and crises.

Not everything can be left to the national level.

Surveillance systems, laboratories, treatment capacity,

there is a strong case for global oversight and coordination to make sure we fill the gaps and that systems are ready.

We will strengthen global networks for enhancing detection and prepare readiness,

strengthen response capacity through our availability of medical countermeasures,

and develop a global health and resilience tracker. Fourth, diversified supply chains.

This means supporting the development and manufacturing of key health products in partner countries,

promoting global partnership for knowledge exchange and clinical research networks for development of health products.

Europe gains from stronger supply chains, our partners gain from investments in local infrastructure,

skills and jobs based on partnership with EU companies.

This is exactly what we are doing on the Global Gateway, with a lot of success, by the way.

5th Societal resilience,

we have seen that there is a higher risk of disinformation during a health crisis.

We need to do more to safeguard the integrity of the information space.

We need to foster trust in science and countering disinformation,

misinformation and foreign information manipulation and interference.

So to conclude, we must keep health high on the global agenda,

and we intend to shape the agenda.

Today's initiatives proves that the European Union is a principled, reliable and forward looking global health partner.

Up to the end of 2025 we have mobilized more than 6 billion for health and made it a key pillar of global gateway to investments.

We bring a unique model to the table and a commitment to strengthen global health resilience.

These proposals are practical, targeted and designed for impact.

The real work, the collaboration, the investment, the action starts basically now.

So thank you, and of course I'm ready to take your questions if there are any.