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Category: COVID19
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Coming Soon: The TRIPS Waiver Negotiations, A Compilation from Geneva Health Files
THE GENEVA HEALTH FILES BOOK ON THE TRIPS WAIVER NEGOTIATIONS Presenting a comprehensive volume capturing the blow-by-blow account of the TRIPS Waiver discussions at the WTO that unfolded during October 2020-June 2022. This is a compilation of 50 stories from Geneva Health Files on the subject. The book has been put together at the request of several readers of Geneva Health Files, including trade negotiators, academics, and activists. The objective has been to weave together and present the path of these negotiations in a chronological, linear fashion. Nearing 450 pages, the book is being presented as a ready reckoner and a journalistic chronicle … Continue reading Coming Soon: The TRIPS Waiver Negotiations, A Compilation from Geneva Health Files
Deconstructing the TRIPS Waiver Discussions: The Susan Sell Interview
In June 2022, the World Trade Organization adopted a decision at its 12th Ministerial Conference, that could potentially help facilitate easier production of COVID-19 vaccines. This was the outcome of a 20-month long discussion at the WTO on the so-called TRIPS Waiver. But ultimately what resulted was a rather narrow legal mechanism, essentially clarifying existing rules in the WTO TRIPS Agreement. For many, this outcome was not entirely surprising. Susan K Sell from the Australian National University has long examined and explored the nature of the TRIPS Agreement and the politics at the WTO. We spoke with Sell during her recent visit to Geneva … Continue reading Deconstructing the TRIPS Waiver Discussions: The Susan Sell Interview
No Mandate on Extending WTO TRIPS Agreement Decision to Medicines & Tests: The U.S.
The US has expressed its reservations on extending the June Ministerial Decision on the TRIPS Agreement to medicines and tests, going beyond vaccines. At the General Council meeting this week, the US reportedly has said that WTO does not have a mandate and that the decision is limited to whether or not to extend the new rules to medicines and tests. But other countries are keen on discussing ways to adapt and negotiate an outcome so as to include medicines and tests in the scope of the new clarifications. Geneva-based trade officials said that nearly 30 delegations took the floor to discuss … Continue reading No Mandate on Extending WTO TRIPS Agreement Decision to Medicines & Tests: The U.S.
Set into Orbit: WHO Member States Agree to Binding Nature of a New Instrument to Govern Pandemics
New rules to also have non-binding elements. In a decisive move, WHO member states, this week, agreed on a legal route to frame new, binding and non-binding rules to govern pandemics. This was the outcome of the second Intergovernmental Negotiating Body that was set up to draft and negotiate a WHO convention, agreement or other international instrument on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. For the moment, it appears member states have bought time, for, the consensus language suggests that the new instrument could be affiliated to Article 19 of the WHO constitution (a reportedly “wider” opt-in approach), while also not … Continue reading Set into Orbit: WHO Member States Agree to Binding Nature of a New Instrument to Govern Pandemics
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Climate Looms Over A New Pandemic Accord, Could Risk Crowding Out Access to Medicines & Equity Issues, Experts Say
That a new pandemic accord will be a closely contested policy space is already obvious. A first, new working draft published on July 13, 2022, gives a nod to equity, and pushes for accountability. But it also refers to the impact of climate change, among many other policy matters. Some caution, that bringing the complex and expansive issues of climate change into the negotiations towards a pandemic accord might crowd out space and time for discussions on more pertinent matters directly relevant to global health, including the barriers caused by intellectual property for the access to medical products during health … Continue reading Climate Looms Over A New Pandemic Accord, Could Risk Crowding Out Access to Medicines & Equity Issues, Experts Say
TRIPS Waiver 2.0 at the WTO: Proponents back at the table to push for therapeutics and diagnostics
The embers from the WTO’s 12th ministerial conference are still warm. While the supporters of the original TRIPS waiver are still coming to terms with the remains of the 20 month saga that yielded a ministerial decision clarifying the rules of compulsory licensing for the production of vaccines, they are back at the WTO to stomach another fight. This time, to discuss the way forward to boost the production of therapeutics and diagnostics by seeking to extend the applicability of the June decision to these medical products. This puts the co-sponsors, again, directly in opposition to industry interests where companies such as … Continue reading TRIPS Waiver 2.0 at the WTO: Proponents back at the table to push for therapeutics and diagnostics
WHO Member States Begin to Define Form and Function of a Pandemic Accord
Geneva is no stranger to contentious discussions in international health policy-making. The current times are also witnessing the conduct of crucial negotiations at breakneck speed. However, speed and time cannot be excuses in the way diplomatic processes are being conducted, Geneva-based health diplomats say. Several countries have not been happy about forcing consensus on several matters in recent weeks on the back of time and resource constraints. The discussions around the World Health Assembly in May this year, give us an indication on what is to come in the negotiations for a pandemic accord. In July, member states will discuss … Continue reading WHO Member States Begin to Define Form and Function of a Pandemic Accord
Trade Won, Health Did Not. A Sliver of a Waiver at the WTO.
There was jubilation and cheer after the landmark ministerial conference at the WTO which saw a raft of agreements between its 164 members, that some say, has set a new benchmark for success, a kind not witnessed in decades. The outcome also included a weak text clarifying the use of existing rules in the WTO TRIPS Agreement. For the 100-odd countries that supported the original TRIPS waiver proposal, and countless supporters globally, conference was a moment of resignation. It was the culmination of 20 months of a fight that saw sustained resistance from many developed countries that refused to waive intellectual property … Continue reading Trade Won, Health Did Not. A Sliver of a Waiver at the WTO.
So Close, Yet So Far: TRIPS Waiver at the WTO
Proposed Waiver Text in Ministers’ Hand, Key Differences Remain Less than 24 hours before the 12th Ministerial Conference gets underway in Geneva – the capital of global health, and the seat of pandemic policy-making – WTO members continue to disagree on key aspects of the organization’s response to the pandemic, including an agreement on a potential waiver of a provision of the TRIPS Agreement. The discussions on the TRIPS Waiver remain on tenterhooks, as ministers will now consider a bracketed text, the WTO reported last night. Key differences remain on how to adapt international trade rules meant to protect intellectual property rights in … Continue reading So Close, Yet So Far: TRIPS Waiver at the WTO
