After more than two years of negotiations, rich and poor countries have failed to come up with a plan for how the world might respond to the next pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) had hoped to finalize a global treaty to fight pandemics like Covid-19 at its yearly meeting of health ministers in Geneva, but the draft treaty did not materialize.
The aim of the treaty was to set guidelines for how WHO’s 194 member countries might stop future pandemics and better share resources. However, experts warned that there were virtually no consequences for countries that do not comply with the treaty.
Diplomats cited vast differences over sharing information about emerging pathogens and sharing technologies to fight them as key reasons for the failure to reach an agreement. The latest draft proposed that WHO should receive 20% of the production of pandemic-related products like tests, treatments, and vaccines, and urged countries to disclose their deals with private companies.
Despite the setback, WHO co-chair Roland Driece emphasized the importance of finalizing an international agreement on how to respond to a pandemic for the sake of humanity. Co-chair Precious Matsoso also expressed optimism that an agreement could still be reached in the future.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged participants not to have regrets and to learn from the experience in order to better prepare for future pandemics. The failure to reach a deal highlights the challenges of global cooperation in addressing health crises and the need for continued efforts to ensure a more coordinated response in the future.