POST-PRESSER LINKS: Virtual press conference on influenza vaccine composition - 27 February 2026

No images? Click here Friday, 27 February 2026 POST-PRESSER LINKS A virtual press conference on influenza vaccine composition for the 2026-2027 northern hemisphere season was held today, 27 February 2026. Here are the relevant resources: Audio recording: https://who.canto.global/b/GT8FU Video recording: https://who.canto.global/b/R1HFD Opening remarks by Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, Director ad interim, Epidemic and Pandemic Management, WHO (see below) Press release: Recommendations for influenza vaccine composition for the 2026-2027 northern hemisphere season Speakers: Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, Director ad interim, Epidemic and Pandemic Management, WHO Dr Wenqing Zhang, Head, Global Respiratory Threats, WHO Professor Nicola Lewis, Director, WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza, The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK Dr Richard Webby, Director, WHO Collaborating Centre for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals and Birds, St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, United States of America   Opening remarks by Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, Director ad interim, Epidemic and Pandemic Management, WHO  Good morning and thank you for joining us. Influenza, or the flu, is an acute respiratory infection caused by influenza viruses that are commonly circulating all around the world. There are around a billion cases of seasonal influenza annually, including 3–5 million cases of severe illness. It causes an estimated 290 000 to 650 000 respiratory deaths annually. Influenza continues to keep us on our toes, not only because of the burden it causes, but because it is constantly changing. These changes require us to stay vigilant and update vaccines regularly. For this, we rely on the strong efforts of the WHO Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System or GISRS, which has served the world for nearly 75 years. GISRS is the global mechanism for surveillance, preparedness and response for seasonal, pandemic and zoonotic influenza. It provides a platform for monitoring influenza epidemiology and disease and serves as a global alert system for novel influenza viruses and other respiratory pathogens. It is composed of 165 institutions in 138 countries, areas or territories, and has continued to expand and reinforce its global coverage. For example, in 2025, the network welcomed five new National Influenza Centres in the African region: in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Mauritania, Mozambique and Niger. This expansion strengthens influenza surveillance capacity across the African continent, improving geographic representation and enhancing the timely detection and sharing of influenza viruses and data. This network is sharing data and viruses throughout the year from 140-160 countries that allows us to track the circulation and evolution of influenza viruses in real time. This represents approximately 10-12 million samples collected and tested by GISRS laboratories each year. Based on the surveillance and lab data collected by GISRS and partners throughout the year, and four days of intense consultation and discussion this week, WHO has today announced updated recommendation for influenza vaccines composition.  We do twice a year to ensure the vaccines for the northern and southern hemispheres are updated to match the circulating viruses. Today’s announcement include recommendation for the 2026-2027 seasonal influenza season in the northern hemisphere, and also includes a zoonotic influenza report which summarizes the antigenic and genetic characteristics of recent zoonotic influenza viruses and related viruses circulating in animals and recommendations for relevant candidate vaccine viruses (CVV) to strengthen preparedness for future pandemic threats. Let me begin with the seasonal influenza recommendations. WHO is recommending the inclusion of ‘subclade K’ (A(H3N2) J.2.4.1) into the next season’s vaccine. This virus first emerged in July-August 2025 and rapidly spread across the world, contributing to an earlier and more intense influenza season in several countries. Subclade K quickly became the predominant circulating influenza strain globally and is now included the 2026-2027 northern hemisphere seasonal influenza recommended vaccine composition. Although influenza B circulation has remained low, we are also recommending an adjustment to the influenza B component of the vaccine, given ongoing changes in the virus. Turning now to zoonotic influenza, including avian influenza and swine influenza. Since the last meeting in late September 2025, 25 human infections of zoonotic influenza viruses have been reported to WHO from six countries. Most of these individuals had direct exposure to infected animals or contaminated environments and no human‑to‑human transmission was reported. Based on how zoonotic influenza viruses are evolving, WHO is issuing updated recommendations for CVVs, which can be used quickly to develop vaccines if a pandemic threat emerges. WHO is recommending the development of a new CVV for an avian influenza - A(H9N2) - virus. The full recommendations are available on WHO’s website, and earlier this morning, we shared the recommendations with global vaccine manufacturers and regulatory agencies in a public information session. Lastly, I want to express my deep appreciation for GISRS: the National Influenza Centres, the nine WHO Collaborating Centres, Essential Regulatory Laboratories, H5 Reference Laboratories, and many other associated laboratories and institutions that make GISRS a true global system addressing the threat from influenza, and other respiratory viruses. The efforts and resilience demonstrated by NICs, WHO CCs and ERLs are tremendously important, especially in the evolving complicated landscape in which we work, with the threat of an influenza pandemic real and ever present. I would also like to thank other institutions, including the World Organization for Animal Health and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Network of Expertise on Animal Influenza (or OFFLU) for their continued contributions of information, clinical specimens, viruses and associated data that are important to track and understand the evolution of influenza viruses. GISRS has become the model of global public health in the complexities of our modern world.    Without the continuous, high‑quality work of this network, influenza vaccine composition recommendations, and the protection they provide, would not be possible. Thank you. 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