By Desire Uzochukwu
Member States of the World Health Organisation, (WHO), have advanced negotiations on a proposed system for sharing pathogen materials and sequence information, a key step towards ensuring faster and more equitable access to vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics during future pandemics.
The progress was recorded at the conclusion of the eighth meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group, IGWG, on the WHO Pandemic Agreement in Geneva, following five days of negotiations involving governments and stakeholders.
The meeting focused on the proposed Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing, PABS, annex, which is expected to underpin a system for the rapid and timely sharing of materials and sequence information from pathogens with pandemic potential.
The proposed system would, on an equal footing, also facilitate the rapid, timely, fair and equitable sharing of vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics developed from the use of those pathogens.
The PABS annex is a central component of the WHO Pandemic Agreement, which was adopted by the World Health Assembly in 2025.
According to WHO, negotiations during the latest meeting focused on developing an equitable, feasible and implementable PABS system.
The development comes as governments prepare for the Second United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response scheduled for September 25, 2026, in New York.
The meeting is expected to bring together heads of state and government to reinforce political commitment to preventing and responding to future pandemics.
The political declaration to be tabled for adoption at the meeting calls, among other measures, for the timely completion of the PABS annex.
WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said the progress made in Geneva was an important step towards fulfilling the commitment made after the COVID-19 pandemic to strengthen global preparedness.
“We made a promise after COVID-19 that we would not leave the world as vulnerable to the next pandemic as it was to the last,” Tedros said.
“The progress made this week brings us closer to keeping that promise. As leaders prepare to meet at the United Nations General Assembly, the message from Geneva is clear: protecting future generations requires commitment, cooperation and urgency.
“Finalizing the PABS annex is essential for strengthening the world’s collective defences against future pandemic threats.”
WHO said finalising the annex would pave the way for countries to sign and consider ratification of the Pandemic Agreement, thereby strengthening global coordination and capacity to prevent, prepare for and respond to future pandemics.
The co-Chairperson of the IGWG Bureau guiding the negotiations, Ambassador Tovar da Silva Nunes of Brazil, said Member States had demonstrated continued commitment to completing the PABS annex.
“Member States have once again demonstrated their commitment to completing the PABS annex in order to strengthen equitable access to the tools and means needed to make the world safer from future pandemics,” he said.
Nunes said the progress recorded during the meeting provided “a strong direction for the weeks ahead” and brought countries closer to establishing an equitable and effective system.
Meanwhile, Dr Ahmed Al Mandhari, Undersecretary for Planning and Health Regulation at the Ministry of Health of Oman, was elected Vice-Chair of the IGWG.
He joins the other Vice-Chairs, Ambassador Vuyile Dlamini of the Kingdom of Eswatini and Dr Viroj Tangcharoensathien of the Kingdom of Thailand.
