UNITE was in Geneva attending the 148th Inter-Parliamentary Union’s Assembly and related meeting, through its permanent observer status.

Our President and Founder, Hon. Ricardo Baptista Leite, had the opportunity to speak at the IPU148, where he urged parliamentarians to participate in the 77th World Health Assembly (WHA), scheduled for May this year, and to “convey the message of the importance of getting the Pandemic Accord approved.”

During the assembly, Hon. Ricardo Baptista Leite had the opportunity to meet and discuss with parliamentarians from Guinea-Bissau, Ireland, Korea, the Philippines, and Romania. The meeting with Senator Lorraine Clifford-Lee, Spokesperson on Health of the Irish Senate and President of the IPU Health Advisory Group, addressed several topics related to global health and the crucial role of parliamentarians, but also the senator’s entry into the UNITE network as our new member.

Important takes from the IPU 148 were the speech of Dr. Tedros Adhanom, Director General of the WHO, on the importance of a Pandemic Accord and the signing of the review of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the IPU and the WHO, signed by Martin Chungongand, Secretary-General of IPU, and the Director-General of WHO. Days spent at the 148th assembly of the IPU were intense but very productive for UNITE, including in recruiting new members. Dr. Ricardo Baptista Leite, also had the opportunity to congratulate Rt. Hon. Dr. Tulia Acksnon on her new capacity as president of the IPU. On that occasion, the role of parliamentarians, multilateralism, Global Health and the UNITE Global Summit in Berlin were discussed.