Their purpose is to: "prevent, protect against, control and provide a public health response to the international spread of disease in ways that are commensurate with and restricted to public health risks, and which avoid unnecessary interference with international traffic and trade" (Murphy & Whitty, 2009).

They name as a risk: "any emergency with repercussions for international health security, including outbreaks of emerging and epidemic-prone diseases, outbreaks of food borne disease, natural disasters, and the accidental or deliberate release of pathogens, or chemical or radio-nuclear materials" (Murphy & Whitty, 2009).