Seventy-sixth session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe opens at Copenhagen

27 October 2026

The 76th session of the World Health Organization Regional Committee for Europe has opened at Copenhagen, with Dr Corinne Capuano serving as Officer-in-Charge of the Regional Office. The Director-General told the session that the Region remains polio-free and that measles cases fell sharply last year, while measles transmission has returned in several countries that had eliminated it. The session's agenda includes a new healthy ageing strategy, a roadmap for safe, ethical and equitable artificial intelligence in health, a new strategy on noncommunicable diseases and health promotion, and a discussion on primary health care building on the Alma-Ata Declaration. The Director-General said Member States adopted amendments to the International Health Regulations in 2024 and the WHO Pandemic Agreement in 2025, and that the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing annex must be finalised before the Agreement can open for signature. The Region has 322 WHO collaborating centres, the most of any region, and the Regional Office maintains 33 country offices.