WHO Pandemic Treaty and Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing

Learn about the WHO Pandemic Treaty and Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS), its objectives, global significance, benefits, and challenges in pandemic preparedness.

Table of Contents

Context

The Pandemic Agreement seeks to improve surveillance, data sharing, and equitable access to vaccines, diagnostics, and treatments. A major issue now being negotiated is the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) system, which determines how countries share pathogen samples and how the benefits of resulting medical products are distributed.

What is the WHO Pandemic Treaty?

The pandemic treaty is a legally binding international agreement aimed at strengthening global cooperation for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. Key Feature:

● Strengthening Global Health Architecture: It promotes international coordination in disease surveillance, data sharing, research collaboration, and supply chains to improve global health security.

● Equitable Access to Medical Tools: A core objective is to ensure fair and timely access to vaccines, diagnostics, and treatments, especially for developing countries that were left behind during COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

● Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS): Countries agree to share pathogen samples and genetic sequence data rapidly so that scientists can develop vaccines or treatments. In return, companies and countries benefiting from these materials must share the resulting benefits.

● Vaccine and Medicine Allocation: During pandemics, manufacturers may be required to donate around 10% of real-time production of vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics to WHO for equitable distribution.

Timeline of the Pandemic Agreement

Year / Event	Key Development
2020–2022	COVID-19 pandemic exposed global inequalities in vaccine access and preparedness systems.
Dec 2021	WHO member states began negotiations on a new pandemic treaty.
2022–2025	Intensive negotiations among countries on pandemic preparedness mechanisms.
20 May 2025	The **World Health Assembly adopted the WHO Pandemic Agreement.
2025–2026	Negotiations on the PABS annex (rules on pathogen sharing and benefit distribution).
May 2026 (expected)	Finalisation of the PABS rulebook at the World Health Assembly.
Post-2026	Agreement opens for signature and ratification by countries.
Entry into force	Treaty becomes effective after 60 countries ratify it.

About the “Group for Equity”

Coalition of Developing Countries: The Group for Equity is an alliance of developing nations advocating stronger benefit-sharing provisions within the pandemic treaty.
Focus on Fair Benefit Sharing: The coalition argues that countries sharing pathogen samples should receive financial returns, vaccines, technology transfer, and affordable medicines.
Preventing “Data Extraction”: Developing countries argue that during past outbreaks they shared biological data but received little benefit when vaccines or medicines were developed.
Legal Enforcement: The group demands legally binding contracts so that pharmaceutical companies and research institutions must share benefits.

Divergence Between Developed and Developing Countries

Issue	Developing Countries’ Position	Developed Countries’ Position
Benefit Sharing	Legally binding obligations for companies using pathogen samples.	Prefer voluntary or incentive-based benefit sharing.
Access to Pathogen Data	Requires prior informed consent and traceability to the source country.	Support faster and less restrictive access to pathogen data.
Financial Returns	Companies should share part of revenues generated from vaccines and medicines.	Prefer voluntary contributions rather than mandatory payments.
Vaccine Supply	Guaranteed share of vaccines and medicines for developing countries.	Agree in principle but resist strict legal obligations.
Technology Transfer	Demand technology transfer and licensing to developing country manufacturers.	Concerned about intellectual property and industry interests.

India’s Position

Support for Equity-Based Framework:India supports stronger benefit-sharing rules to ensure developing countries receive fair returns for sharing pathogen samples.
Legally Binding Contracts: India supports the demand that every entity using pathogen materials must sign enforceable agreements guaranteeing benefit sharing.
Traceability of Biological Data: India supports systems to track pathogen materials and genetic data back to the originating country.
Affordable Pandemic Products: India argues that vaccines, diagnostics, and medicines developed using shared data must be made available at affordable prices to developing nations.
Role as Voice of the Global South: India has aligned with developing countries to ensure that global health governance becomes more equitable and less dominated by pharmaceutical interests.

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