Quadripartite global technical meeting on MERS-CoV and other emerging zoonotic Coronaviruses

Since its identification in Saudi Arabia in 2012, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) has continued to pose significant public health, health security and economic threats to the global community. To date, more than 2,500 cases of human infection have been reported to the World Health Organization (WHO), with cases exported to all regions of the globe (WHO, 2022).

Over the last ten years, FAO, WHO, WOAH and more recently UNEP have worked together with Member States, public health professionals and experts across multiple sectors and technical disciplines to improve preparedness and response capacities for MERS-CoV and other high-threat zoonotic pathogens around the world. This work continues to bring together human and animal health experts from affected and at-risk countries, scientists and subject matter experts of high-threat respiratory pathogens to review the latest scientific evidence on MERS-CoV and improve multisectoral collaboration.