Pandemics exacerbate and thrive on inequity. They find the fissures in our societies and deepen them. As a result, the poorest and most marginalized always suffer the most. We have seen this with HIV and we are seeing it again with COVID-19. Rich countries are starting booster vaccination campaigns while most people in poor countries […] Continue reading ->
While the vast majority of World Health Organization (WHO) member states expressed support for a negotiated pandemic “instrument” at Tuesday’s World Health Assembly special session (WHASS), many also urged the strengthening of the International Health Regulations (IHR) – currently the only existing legal framework to address pandemics. Singapore, Thailand, Zambia, and Colombia were among those […] Continue reading ->
A special session of the World Health Assembly is under way this week with just one item under consideration – Pandemic Treaty. Will a pandemic treaty be able to help address deficiencies in global solidarity, and improve access to essential lifesaving medicines, vaccines, and tools? The short answer is no. Not without the political will […] Continue reading ->
In a first face-to-face meeting in Geneva since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization’s 194 member states appeared set to adopt a landmark decision to negotiate a new treaty or framework convention governing pandemic response, dubbed “Our World Together”, and with over 100 countries now declaring co-sponsorship. But from the start […] Continue reading ->
Ahead of World AIDS Day, 1 December, UNAIDS has warned that the world could face 7.7 million AIDS-related deaths over the next 10 years if leaders fail to tackle inequalities exacerbated by COVID-19. If transformative measures needed to end HIV/AIDS are not taken, the world will also remain dangerously unprepared for pandemics to come, said […] Continue reading ->
As pandemic treaty negotiations kick off again at the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva this week, countries face a stark choice. Will they decide to move ahead on a new system that vests an independent entity with greater powers to monitor their own national alert and responses – in the name of faster pandemic […] Continue reading ->
Human rights lawyers have threatened legal action against the governments of Canada, Germany, Norway and the United Kingdom if they fail to support a waiver of the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) Agreement in relation to COVID-19 healthcare products. The waiver will be discussed at the 12th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO) […] Continue reading ->
Every day, more than 650 children around the world die from tuberculosis – largely because they have never had the chance to be diagnosed and treated. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, children have fallen behind on almost every score – from access to schooling and nutrition to mental health and basic health services. […] Continue reading ->
There is “broad consensus” on the need for a “binding pact” to address the threat of pandemics, said World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General on Wednesday – a few days before the World Health Assembly special session devoted exclusively to discussing what many refer to as a pandemic treaty. “The ongoing chaos of this pandemic only […] Continue reading ->
In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, tuberculosis mortality has started to increase for the first time in a decade. In 2020 alone, more than 1.5 million people died from TB. Every year, about half a million people develop a drug-resistant form of TB (DR-TB). The vast majority of people with TB live in low- […] Continue reading ->