UN agency urges production of affordable generics for GLP-1 drugs to treat obesity and diabetes in developing countries.Published On 5 Sep 20255 Sep 2025The World Health Organization (WHO) has added a new set of drugs for obesity and diabetes to its essential medicines list, alongside treatments for cancer and cystic fibrosis.Cheap generic versions of the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs should also be made available for people in developing countries, the United Nations agency said in a statement on Friday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listThe list, consisting of 523 medicines for adults and 374 for children, is a catalogue of the drugs the WHO believes should be available in all functioning health systems.“The new editions of essential medicines lists mark a significant step toward expanding access to new medicines with proven clinical benefits and with high potential for global public health impact,” said Yukiko Nakatani, WHO’s assistant director-general for Health Systems, Access and Data.The expert committee added the active ingredients in Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro to the list, to treat type 2 diabetes in conjunction with established cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease or obesity.
“Today WHO is releasing the latest editions of the WHO Model Lists of Essential Medicines and Essential Medicines for Children.
These lists are among WHO’s most important products, used in over 150 countries to shape public sector procurement, the supply of medicines, health…
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) September 5, 2025The medicines were initially developed for diabetes, and have become wildly popular as weight-los …
