The landmark Pandemic Agreement for tackling future health crises, which is aimed at preventing the disjointed responses and international disarray that surrounded the COVID-19 pandemic by improving global coordination and surveillance, and access to vaccines in future pandemics, lacked the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) system when it was concluded by member states in April, just to get the deal over in time.
The countries concerned gave themselves another year to thrash out the details of how it will work, and the World Health Organization recently said that they are now in a strong position to finalize that missing piece of the pandemic treaty, which will determine how vaccines are shared.
The PABS mechanism deals with sharing access to pathogens with pandemic potential, then sharing the benefits derived from them: vaccines, tests, and treatments.
Countries are tasked with getting the PABS system finalized by the next World Health Assembly in mid-May. The annual gathering of member states is the WHO’s decision-making body.
“This is both a generational opportunity and a generational responsibility,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, after countries wrapped up a week of talks.
“Together, we are moving toward a world that is better prepared for future pandemics.”
Countries will resume the fourth round of talks on January 20-22.
Once the PABS system is finalized, the entire agreement can then be ratified by members, with 60 ratifications required for the treaty to enter into force. “As we cross the halfway mark in negotiations on the PABS system, I am encouraged by the progress we’ve made towards enabling a faster and more equitable global response to future pandemics,” said Matthew Harpur, co-chair of the talks.
Given our experience with the COVID-19 pandemic, the human race certainly needs have learned its lessons and be more prepared. Hopefully our leaders are willing to negotiate and reach compromises that will allow us to collectively face such threats, instead of making the same mistakes that ended up with us wasting time, resources, and losing necessary lives because of weak and uncoordinated responses to a global issue.*
