“COVID-19 is not just a global health emergency, it is a vivid demonstration of the fact that there is no health security without resilient health systems, or without addressing the social, economic, commercial and environmental determinants of health.” Director General of WHO (73rd WHA)

The world today is increasingly interconnected and interdependent. People, goods, and their related services move easily and quickly across regions and international boundaries. This global dynamic presents great opportunities but also comes with its share of challenges and hazards that continuously threaten our society. Foremost of concern are public health events that can emerge locally and spread globally, as has been seen with the COVID-19 pandemic.

There is an urgent need for strengthened health systems which consider the full scope of interventions and actions required to sustainably provide health security. This is the concept of health systems for health security {#HSforHS), which goes beyond the current WHO Benchmarks for International Health Regulations (IHR) capacities recommendations to encompass the health system functions as well as necessary contributions from other sectors.