Statement to the 6th IGWG on WHO Pandemic Agreement
Statement delivered by Health Action International to the Sixth meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) on the WHO Pandemic Agreement.
Thank you, Chair,
This statement is delivered on behalf of Health Action International (HAI), Salud por Derecho (SD) and Public Citizen (PC).
As we enter the final stretch of negotiations on a Pathogens Access Benefit sharing scheme, we remain concerned that some of the issues yet to be properly addressed will have a critical impact on the ability of the international community to adequately respond to future pandemic outbreaks and other health emergencies.
Transparency and accountability in response to health emergencies should be non-negotiable. And yet, procurement contracts and donation agreements, both by governments and other agencies very much involved in these negotiations – for example, HERA – are being concluded in secret, with no information on price and conditions made available. The recent purchase contract for Mpox vaccine doses with potential, but not certain, donation to 3rd countries is a case in point. Many of these same actors are resisting a transparent and accountable PABS system with firm equity commitments that would help ensure developing countries are not last in line for medical countermeasures.
While technology transfer is widely hailed as a pillar for an equitable response to pandemics, neither the INB nor this process have recognised the urgency of delivering an operational framework that promotes cooperation over profit. In that sense, the proposed voluntary basis risks becoming an obstacle to engaging in effective sharing of knowledge and transfer of expertise.
While we remain hopeful of a positive outcome of these negotiations, a vague text with no binding obligations, workable schemes or enforceable commitments should not be considered a success. We urge you to create a fair PABS system that can save lives in future health crises.