G7 health ministers, during a meeting held on Thursday, said that they were ”deeply concerned” by the rise in cases of the Omicron variant, and agreed that these developments should be seen as the ”biggest current threat to global public health.”

They said that it, ”it is more important than ever to closely cooperate, and monitor as well as share data. This will be key to addressing the fast developing situation.”

In a statement following their final meeting of the UK’s G7 Presidency, they said, ”in light of these extensive challenges, G7 ministers reiterated the commitment to taking forward the pledges in recent G7 and G20 declarations to tackle the ongoing pandemic and build defences for the future.”

Following information exchange between ministers they agreed that ”working together was crucial in responding to the rapidly growing Omicron wave.”

Ministers highlighted the importance of equitable access to diagnostics, genome sequencing, vaccines and therapeutics. ‘They also agreed on the increasing importance of booster campaigns and regular testing alongside continued non-pharmaceutical measures,” the statement read.

They also reiterated their continuous support for COVAX, their commitment to the global effort on vaccine rollout and their support for accelerated development of vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics in pandemics.

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