A new sublicense agreement for a COVID-19 antibody test has been announced Thursday by the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) on behalf of the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP) and South African company Biotech Africa. The new agreement builds on the first non-exclusive licensing agreement announced by WHO and MPP last year with […] Continue reading ->
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is extending its 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) for a fifth day, buying time for delegates to negotiate some tough deals in five main areas: the pandemic response, COVID-19 vaccines, fishing subsidies, food shortages and agriculture. The long-delayed ministerial conference, which opened on Sunday and was originally planned to close on […] Continue reading ->
Russia’s ongoing refusal to let Ukranian grain lift its blockade of Black Sea ports is causing a global food crisis and has led to allegations that the country is weaponizing” the world’s food supply. Over the weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that the world will face a “severe food crisis” as Russia’s war continues […] Continue reading ->
After nearly 18 months of debate, World Trade Organization (WTO) members now appear likely to approve a limited waiver of patent rights on COVID-19 vaccines in their closing session on Wednesday. But if the current draft text is approved as it stands, it may be a pyrrhic victory for the medicines access groups that fought […] Continue reading ->
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), has called a meeting of the emergency committee for next Thursday to discuss whether monkeypox should be declared a public health emergency. This follows the spread of the disease in at least 32 new countries outside of the nine African countries where it is […] Continue reading ->
The World Trade Organization’s Director General Dr Ngozi Okonjo Iweala said she was “cautiously optimistic” about the potential for WTO members to reach long-delayed agreements on issues such as a limited IP waiver for COVID vaccines as well as a decision to curb harmful fisheries subsidies that allow big industrial rigs to plunder the oceans […] Continue reading ->
Eritrea has yet to start vaccinating its citizens against COVID-19, whereas two African countries – South Africa and Tunisia – are now offering citizens over 50 a second COVID-19 booster vaccine. However, but the vaccination rate on the continent is far behind the global vaccination target of 70%. Dr Ahmed Ogwell Ouma, Acting Director of […] Continue reading ->
Fears of cholera have emerged in the ruined and Russian-occupied Ukrainian port city of Mariupol. Exiled local officials have voiced concern over the drinking supply in the city, which has been contaminated as a result of decomposing bodies and garbage. “The city has really turned into one with corpses everywhere,” said mayoral aide Petro Andryushchenko […] Continue reading ->
Confirmed cases of monkeypox reported to WHO outside of Africa’s endemic zone have doubled once again since last week, 1 June – with more than 1000 cases now having been reported in some 29 countries that don’t usually see the disease. So far, no deaths have been reported in those countries. But some 66 deaths […] Continue reading ->
Countries have failed miserably to halt rising obesity, despite goals set by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2018. Instead, obesity continues to rise apace. Now, however, a new WHO strategy for accelerating action against obesity, endorsed last week by the World Health Assembly, calls for much tougher policies on food packaging, pricing and marketing […] Continue reading ->