WHO begins final PABS talks in Geneva

World Health Organization member states returned to Geneva on April 27 for a final round of talks on the pandemic agreement’s unfinished pathogen-sharing annex. (who.int) The resumed sixth meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group runs from April 27 to May 1 in hybrid format. Its job is to draft the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing annex, the last major piece left after countries adopted the broader pandemic agreement in May 2025. (who.int 1) (who.int 2) Pathogen access and benefit sharing is the bargain at the center of the talks: countries share samples or genetic sequence data from dangerous microbes, and in return they expect access to tests, treatments and vaccines made from that information. The World Health Organization says the system is meant to help countries detect pandemic threats quickly and respond faster. (who.int) The dispute is over what countries and companies must give back. Reuters, via MedicalXpress, reported that lower-income countries want reliable access to vaccines and medicines, while wealthier countries have raised concerns about legal obligations, returns and implementation. (medicalxpress.com) (firstpost.com) The deadline matters because the annex is not a side document. When the World Health Assembly adopted the pandemic agreement in 2025, it said the treaty would open for signature and ratification only after the assembly also adopts the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing annex. (who.int) Negotiators already had to buy more time once. On March 28, the World Health Organization said member states agreed to extend the talks after failing to close the annex in the previous round, with discussions pushed into late April ahead of the May World Health Assembly. (who.int) African countries have been organizing around a common position before this session. An African Union press release said ambassadors in Geneva held a workshop on April 23 to solidify the continent’s stance on the annex, calling it the most contentious part of the pandemic agreement. (au.int) Uganda’s health ministry has publicly pushed vaccine equity in the talks, arguing that countries that share pathogens should not wait months for doses in the next crisis. Uganda’s Daily Monitor tied that demand directly to the shortages many poorer countries faced during Covid-19. (monitor.co.ug) At the same time, the World Health Organization has been stress-testing outbreak coordination. On April 27 it said Exercise Polaris II, held on April 22 and 23, involved 26 countries and territories, 600 health emergency experts and more than 25 partners in a fictional bacterial outbreak scenario. (who.int) The Geneva talks now have five days to settle the terms of who shares pathogens, who gets the resulting products, and on what timetable. If they fail again, the broader pandemic agreement stays stuck short of signature and ratification. (who.int 1) (who.int 2)