W@LifeSciences Event | WHO Pandemic Treaty - What is the way forward?
Solutions for Bridging the Gap to Equitable Access to Pandemic-Related Medical Products
This W@LifeSciences event aims to provide an opportunity to take stock of the outcomes of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Pandemic Treaty negotiations and of the World Health Assembly (WHA) decision, and consider the implications globally, for health security in Europe, as well as for industry.
17:00 Doors open
17:30 Discussion chaired by Laura Batchelor, Board Member of W@LifeSciences
- Maggie de Block – Former Belgian Minister of Health and MP, Member of the Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance
- Yuliya Gevrenova – Associate in the Life Sciences Practice Group, Covington & Burling
- Martin Widstam – Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations, EEAS
- Dr Nelson Dordelly Rosales – Advocacy & International Relations Specialist at
FOUR PAWS International
18:40 Networking drinks
The event, hosted by Covington & Burling, is open to everyone regardless of gender. Advance registration required: first come, first served.
More about the event theme:
The idea for a WHO Pandemic Treaty was born out of the Covid-19 pandemic which revealed the global challenges in preparing for and responding to pandemic health emergencies. Many of the issues encountered in the pandemic fell beyond the scope of the existing International Health Regulations (IHR), such as the equitable access to pandemic- related health products and the sharing of pathogen and genome sequencing data (GSD). The Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) was mandated to deliver a Pandemic Treaty to address these gaps and provide a framework for WHO Member States to collaborate in the event of a pandemic.
Over the last two years, negotiations for the treaty have been challenging. It has shown that building a system that provides equitable access to pandemic-related health products is a complex issue that requires agreement on a range of topics such as Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing, Supply Chain and Logistics, Research and Development, Tech Transfer, OneHealth, Financing, among others. After it proved impossible for an agreement on the treaty to be reached prior to the 77th World Health Assembly (WHA) in May, the deadline has now been extended by one year. The international community needs to use this opportunity to try and put aside their differences, particularly on pathogen access, governance and accountability. The response to the next pandemic will require the international community to take proactive steps for real change.