WHO Member States have concluded the eighth meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group on the WHO Pandemic Agreement, advancing negotiations on a proposed Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) system.
The system aims to enable rapid sharing of pathogen materials and sequence information while ensuring fair and equitable access to vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics developed from them.
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“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,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “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. “
The discussions come ahead of the UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response on 25 September 2026. WHO says completing the PABS annex is an important step toward finalizing the Pandemic Agreement and strengthening global pandemic preparedness.
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“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,” said Ambassador Tovar da Silva Nunes of Brazil, co-Chairperson of the IGWG Bureau guiding the negotiations.
