NEW STATEMENT. @rani.co encourages @who.int Member States to find a concrete path forward to finalise an #equitable #PABS Annex before #WHA79. We urge negotiators to stay at the table and get a deal done for a more #resilient future.
rani.co/find-a-path-...
6️⃣ The next hours are critical ⚠️. Negotiators are expected to work through to Sunday morning to conclude the Annex. If there is no breakthrough, they will need to chart an alternative path for finalising #PABS – a decision that could affect the #PandemicAgreement's timeline for entry into force.
3️⃣ On access 🔓, delegates continue to debate database rules and arrangements that would allow proper identification of #PABS data and materials and their users.
Just past the halfway mark of #IGWG6, progress on the #PABS Annex has been incremental at best – putting major pressure on @who.int Member States to conclude negotiations in the next 48–60 hours.
Mid-meeting takeaways 🧵👇🏼
In the @rani.co Playbook: High stakes ⌛ #PABS’ most decisive week #IGWG6 🔔 #BrusselsResilienceForum report 🛡️ Future-proofing #MFF 🔮 Take action for #PandemicPPRHLM momentum ⚡ From rethinking to reform @wellcometrust.bsky.social 🌏 & more!
mailchi.mp/rani/high-st...
9️⃣ @rani_action called on Member States to move from rhetoric to action:
▪️ Get an effective & equitable #PABS deal done, with opportunities for improvement over time
▪️ Advance the gains of the #PandemicAgreement and move towards implementation
⬇️ rani.co/it-is-time-t...
7️⃣ #HICs have focussed on open access to #PABS data to enable agile development of pandemic countermeasures – and an implementable system with the right incentives for private sector engagement.
6️⃣ Broadly, positions haven't shifted much since #IGWG5. #LMICs are pushing for greater legal certainty, robust traceability of #PABS material, and enforceable benefits – both during pandemics and between them.
1️⃣ #IGWG6 is the last scheduled PABS negotiation before #WHA79. For the next 6️⃣ days, Member States will focus exclusively on operationalising the #PABS system – designed to ensure benefits in exchange for disease surveillance and pathogen data sharing.
This week, @who.int Member State delegates are in Geneva for #IGWG6, aiming to finalise negotiations on the #PABS Annex and advance the #PandemicAgreement toward ratification.
Key takeaways from Day 1️⃣ and issues to watch as talks unfold 🧵👇🏼
In case you missed this civil society letter from earlier this week www.politico.eu/wp-content/u... #PABS
⚡️ NEW! Ahead of #IGWG6, @rani.co urges Member States to get an equitable, effective #PABS deal done and advance the #PandemicAgreement the world needs for health security and #resilience. 🌏
Read ⬇️ rani.co/it-is-time-t...
In the @rani.co Playbook: Navigating Crises 🚣🏽♀️ Building climate and health #resilience @ranafrica.org 🌍 Make or break moment #PABS ⏰ Smart defence #MFF 🛡️ First MOU for #AfricaCDC @ecdc.europa.eu 🫱🏾🫲🏽 New reads 📚 and listens 🎧 & more!
mailchi.mp/rani/navigat...
In the @rani.co Playbook: Recalibrating for shifts 🎛️ Securing the future with @cepi.net 🦠 Rising cost of defence 🛡 #PABS final stretch #IGWG5 🏃🏽 #AUSummit strides 🌍 New hub on the bloc 🌟 Latest announcements, opportunities, reads & many more!
mailchi.mp/rani/recalib...
🔟 Questions about #PABS? ⚡ Refer to rani’s briefing paper on PABS, which covers questions about a PABS system and provides an overview of related systems in other international agreements. rani.co/briefing-pap...
7️⃣ Plans for the 5️⃣-week intersessional period are still to be announced. Discussions are expected to focus on advancing solutions to key blocked issues, including access to #PABS materials, contracts, and benefits during PHEICs and beyond, as well as key terms and governance.
6️⃣ Relevant stakeholders remained engaged. On Friday, they shared recommendations and concerns on how to ensure an enforceable & accountable #PABS system. On process, they called for careful sequencing of discussions and encouraged facilitated exchanges with cross-regional hosts.
4️⃣ Other key remarks:
Switzerland emphasised building on existing systems and capacities to operationalise #PABS
Germany encouraged the Bureau to steer the IGWG toward consensus and landing zones
Brazil called for strengthening transparency & legitimacy by webcasting negotiations
2️⃣ In closing remarks, the EU expressed concern about the lack of progress and the limited time remaining. It called for pragmatism and focus, stressing that #PABS must be implementable, and attract participation from researchers and VTD manufacturers.
1️⃣ #IGWG5’s closing session showed a clear gap between 🌍 LMICs and 🇪🇺 the #EU and other HICs with leading pharmaceutical industries, with negotiations stuck on key issues to operationalise #PABS – traceability of material users and legal certainty for benefit-sharing.
In the @rani.co Playbook: A moment of choice ⚖️ #PABS #IGWG5 against the clock ⌛️ @ranafrica.org in Sierra Leone 🌍 From EU to US #biotech legislation 🧬 Global health funding inching along 📏 #H5N1 goes Dutch? 🐮 We’re #hiring in Brussels ⚡& more!
mailchi.mp/rani/a-momen...
#MSF technical brief:
"Ensuring Collective Efforts Deliver Equitable Access Through the WHO #PABS System"
#PandemicAgreement
msfaccess.org/ensuring-col...
9️⃣ There are three more days during #IGWG5. We are counting on Member States to find solutions to deliver an equitable and effective #PABS Annex for this year’s #WHA.
🔗 rani.co/find-solutio...
8️⃣ Another issue under debate: #PABS contracts. There is broad agreement that contracts are the tool to operationalise PABS. Some countries want template contracts embedded in the Annex, while others say the text should only define core elements and leave flexibility for implementation.
6️⃣ The other favours 🔽 ‘downstream’ accountability – allowing more open access to data, with users agreeing to terms when accessing #PABS materials and data, and compliance enforced later, particularly at the stage of patents or product approval.
4️⃣ An extended session on Wednesday with relevant stakeholders allowed exchange with the #IGWG Bureau members and delegates. Civil society groups raised several concerns, largely focused on how to trace #PABS material users and hold them accountable.
1️⃣ 3 days in and there is no policy breakthrough. Talks remain deadlocked on key elements of the #PABS Annex – notably traceability of #PABS material users & legal certainty for benefit-sharing. The Bureau urged delegates to adopt a solutions mindset to bridge positions.
Midway through #IGWG5, pressure is mounting to finalise the #PABS Annex so the #PandemicAgreement can move toward ratification. Yet progress appears stalled, as @who.int Member States continue seeking consensus on how to operationalise PABS.
Here are our key midweek takeaways 🧵👇🏼
The Annex to the #PandemicAgreement under negotiation in @who.int is critical to address future pandemics. The Group for Equity spoke clearly: "the Pathogen Access & Benefit Sharing System #PABS is the ♥️ of the WHO Pandemic Agreement. If the heart is weak, the body cannot function,
Of course they did. Spineless #PABs
