In a recent meeting in Geneva, health experts from around the world gathered to discuss the urgent need for a pandemic treaty. Muhammad Ali Pate, Nigeria’s health minister and a board member of the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria, expressed concern about the world’s lack of preparedness for another major health crisis. He emphasized the importance of reaching an agreement on the treaty to ensure that countries are better equipped to handle future pandemics.
One of the main challenges in the treaty negotiations has been ensuring that low and middle-income countries have access to life-saving tests, treatments, and vaccines. A proposal to allocate 20% of these products at either no-profit costs or through donations has been met with some resistance. Ali Pate argued that this allocation is necessary to avoid a repeat of the scramble for resources that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, which left many African countries at a disadvantage.
While negotiations on the treaty are expected to continue for several months or even years, there is a sense of urgency to reach an agreement. Concerns have been raised that upcoming elections in key countries could result in right-leaning governments that may oppose the treaty. However, the WHO has emphasized that the treaty is not intended to infringe on countries’ sovereignty, and a clause in the document safeguards against this.
Overall, there is a push to finalize both the pandemic treaty and updates to existing rules governing disease outbreaks before the end of the WHO’s annual meeting. The goal is to ensure that
