What are the main challenges in global health this year? We reached out to experts to highlight the priorities that are likely to dominate the agenda, and the topics expected to take centre stage in 2026. <\/p>\n
From shifts in global health leadership to climate change and artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, these issues will shape policy, drive debate, and determine who leads the global conversation. <\/p>\n
Who takes the lead in global health?<\/p>\n
Global health faced a major shock last year when Donald Trump\u2019s administration in the United States announced unprecedented cuts to humanitarian and development aid. <\/p>\n
Since then, several countries have followed suit, shifting their priorities and limiting resources for international health programmes<\/strong><\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cRecent funding pauses for global health initiatives are creating headwinds for progress, with effects that could persist into 2026 if uncertainty continues,\u201d warned Anja Langenbucher, Europe office director at the Gates Foundation. \u201cThis comes at a moment when child mortality is edging back up for the first time this century.\u201d<\/p>\n She noted that there are still reasons for \u201ccautious optimism\u201d, pointing to AI-enabled tools that can improve health service targeting, next generation vaccines, and climate-smart agriculture that enhances resilience and productivity. <\/p>\n \u201cWith stable platforms and more stable funding in place \u2013 areas where the EU and others are already well placed to lead \u2013 2026 could be a year when distant possibilities in health become realistic solutions,\u201d Langenbucher told Euronews Health. <\/p>\n The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria highlighted malaria as a key challenge for the months ahead. <\/p>\n The organisation said stalled progress on stemming malaria and growing drug resistance exemplify the consequences of underfunded and poorly integrated prevention, primary care, and community delivery systems. <\/p>\n \u201cTaken together, the year ahead will be defined by hard choices, but also by an opportunity to refocus global health around impact, integration, and country leadership \u2013 with the ultimate measure being whether we can protect the most vulnerable from entirely preventable diseases,\u201d a spokesperson from the Global Fund said. <\/p>\n Growing opportunities for technological innovation<\/p>\n AI and other new technologies are expected to transform healthcare<\/strong><\/a> this year, driving advances in diagnostics, drug development, and workload reduction for healthcare professionals. <\/p>\n Philips, a global health technology company, pointed to AI\u2019s potential for reducing healthcare workers\u2019 daily workload as one of the most promising advances. <\/p>\n \u201cHealthcare is entering a new phase, with AI creating new possibilities for how care is delivered and experienced, and helping make sense of an increasingly complex system,\u201d a Philips spokesperson told Euronews Health. <\/p>\n By easing administrative pressure, clinicians can focus more of their time and attention on patient care, while AI works in the background to improve efficiency, the spokesperson added. <\/p>\n Across Europe, biotechnology is also advancing rapidly, with the recently presented EU Biotech Act<\/strong><\/a> set to take the centre stage in policy discussions. <\/p>\n \u201cIf we had to sum up, what we expect in 2026 is the year of biotechnology for Europe to contribute to strategic autonomy, to the competitiveness of the continent,\u201d a spokesperson from Spanish biotech pharmaceutical HIPRA told Euronews health. <\/p>\n HIPRA also highlighted biotech\u2019s growing role in security and biodefence \u2013 both to counter biological threats and to enable a rapid response to health emergencies such as future pandemics through advanced diagnostics, vaccines, and other medical countermeasures. <\/p>\n \u201cAll these infrastructures, all these investments prepare us for any kind of threat, be it natural or a pathogen that jumps from human animals or created in laboratories,\u201d HIPRA\u2019s spokesperson added, saying this preparedness will be key to Europe\u2019s competitiveness. <\/p>\n Healthcare systems and workforces under pressure<\/p>\n Another major challenge healthcare systems are facing is a growing workforce shortage amid rising demand, ageing populations, and worsening mental health among professionals. <\/p>\n \u201cWe can expect workforce constraints will remain central to health policy debates in 2026,\u201d said Katherine de Bienassis, health policy analyst at Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).<\/p>\n She told Euronews Health that persistent shortages of nurses, primary care physicians, and specialists are common across OECD countries, reducing system capacity and exacerbating inequities. <\/p>\n \u201cMethods for ensuring health system productivity are likely to become increasingly central as systems strive to deliver more with fewer resources, while also maintaining patient outcomes,\u201d de Bienassis added. <\/p>\n Climate change and emerging threats<\/p>\n