The Global Meeting of the World Health Organization's Emergency Medical Teams (EMT) Initiative in November 2024 took place with significant participation from the German EMT organisations and the RKI's Centre for International Health Protection (ZIG). Prof. Dr. Johanna Hanefeld, head of ZIG and acting vice president of the RKI, took part, as did the team of the German National Focal Point for Emergency Medical Teams (EMT NFP) from ZIG 3, including team leader Katrin Reichau. The team lead of the Global Outbreak and Response Network (GOARN) from ZIG 1 also travelled to the three-day meeting in Abu Dhabi (5 to 7 November 2024).

The EMT Global Meeting brings together the global EMT community and its partners – including governmental and non-governmental organisations – to exchange ideas every two years at different locations. At the meeting in Abu Dhabi, participants discussed the latest developments and progress of the initiative in the WHO regions, as well as the implementation of the global EMT 2030 Strategy. The so-called ‘Regional Action Plan’ (RAP) for the European region should be highlighted here as the first regional action plan to be approved worldwide.
At the Global Meeting, the newly classified EMTs – including CADUS e.V. from Germany – were honoured and the EMTs that were reclassified last year – including the Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund, humedica, I.S.A.R. Germany and Johanniter – were given special recognition.

The German EMT community was present with representatives from all six classified German EMTs. A joint exhibition booth of the German EMTs and the EMT NFP highlighted the many aspects of collaboration in Germany and the global interconnection in international projects for capacity strengthening. In numerous direct meetings with EMT project partners, current projects and activities were discussed and new partnerships initiated.

One highlight from a German and RKI perspective was the official appointment of Prof. Dr. Johanna Hanefeld as the new chair of the EMT Strategic Advisory Group, which, in addition to personal recognition, also highlights Germany's active role in the global EMT community. In addition, representatives of the German EMTs and ZIG participated in numerous lectures and panel discussions, e.g. on the modularisation of EMTs, the implementation of the Highly Infectious Diseases Technical Standards, Complex Emergencies or One Health.

The Global Meeting clearly demonstrated the strategic importance of a comprehensively funded EMT initiative for national and international health emergency response. The increased visibility of the German EMT community and the appointment of Prof. Dr. Hanefeld confirmed Germany's leading position in this field.