Pandemic influenza preparedness: sharing of influenza viruses and access to vaccines and other benefits A resolution requested the Director-General to take forward those parts of the pandemic preparedness framework on which agreement had been reached, and to facilitate a process to finalize the remaining elements, including Standard Material Transfer Agreement (SMTA) and report to the Executive Board at its 126th session in January 2010.

Prevention of avoidable blindness and visual impairment A resolution was approved endorsing an action plan to expand efforts to eliminate avoidable blindness by strengthening national eye health programmes. The plan contains actions for Member States, international partners and the WHO secretariat aimed at strengthening commitment at global and national levels to eliminate avoidable blindness. Actions are also aimed at strengthening national eye health policies and plans, increasing research to prevent blindness, improving coordination between partners and stakeholders to scale up efforts, and monitoring progress in elimination of avoidable blindness at national, regional and global levels.

Climate change and health The resolution included a work plan to scale up WHO's technical assistance to countries to assess and address the implications of climate change for health and health systems.

The work plan has four objectives:

advocacy and awareness raising; engagement in partnerships with other UN organizations and sectors other than the health sector at national, regional and international levels; promoting and supporting the generation of scientific evidence; and strengthening health systems to cope with the health threat posed by climate change, including emergencies related to extreme weather events and sea-level rise.

Other resolutions included: health conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem, and in the occupied Syrian Golan; primary health care, including health system strengthening; traditional medicine; reducing health inequities through action on the social determinants of health; and the medium-term strategic plan 2008-2013.

The Health Assembly also heard progress reports on a variety of health issues such as polio eradication, where delegates expressed deep concern with continued polio transmission in endemic countries but re-iterated their firm commitment to the goal of global polio eradication.

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