Former President Uhuru Kenyatta has received an award from the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO formally recognized the pivotal role of several heads of state and government in securing the adoption of the WHO Pandemic Agreement by the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly in May 2025.
Uhuru received the award during a special event at WHO Headquarters in Geneva on July 10, 2025.
“World Health Organization, His Excellency Mr Uhuru Kenyatta, Former President of Kenya, The World Together, In recognition of your key role in championing and advocating for the WHO Pandemic Agreement that was adopted by the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly, May 20, 2025,” reads the certificate awarded to Uhuru.
The certificate has been signed by WHO Director‑General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Plaques were presented to Sebastián Piñera, former President of Chile, and Tunisian President Kais Saied, who both advocated for the Agreement from the outset.
Certificates were also awarded to leaders of 24 other countries for their guidance and commitment throughout the negotiation process.
“The adoption by the World Health Assembly of the Pandemic Agreement was a historic moment in global health,” Dr Ghebreyesus said.
“But we would not have reached that moment without sustained political advocacy from the highest levels”.
Leaders Awarded Alongside Uhuru Kenyatta
Other countries whose current or former presidents or prime ministers were also recognized include Albania, Costa Rica, Croatia, Fiji, France, Germany, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, and the Republic of Korea.
Additional countries recognized are the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Rwanda, Senegal, Serbia, South Africa, Spain, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
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The Pandemic Agreement represents a global commitment to a more robust international health architecture.
WHO said the Agreement is grounded in equity, cooperation, and shared responsibility.
The political momentum behind the Agreement was partly driven by a 2021 commentary published in major international outlets, where 25 heads of state and leaders of international organizations called for the establishment of a pandemic treaty.
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WHO Next Steps
WHO has now started to take forward key elements of the Pandemic Agreement, in particular on pathogen access and benefit sharing.
This work is being led by an intergovernmental working group (the “IGWG on the WHO Pandemic Agreement”), which met for the first time in July 2025.
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