PSI Joins High-Stakes WHO Talks on Pandemic Equity This Week
Mar 24, 2026
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PSI is actively participating in the final round of crucial negotiations at the World Health Organization this week, as governments race to finalise the missing piece of the global Pandemic Agreement: the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) system.
The sixth meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) runs from 23–28 March in Geneva. Its outcome will determine whether the Pandemic Agreement - adopted in May 2025 - delivers real equity or repeats the failures of COVID-19.
Pedro Villardi, PSI’s Global coordinator for Health Equity, delivered a firm statement on behalf of PSI, urging governments to put people and public health workers ahead of corporate profits in the PABS framework.
Video
The sixth meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) runs from 23–28 March in Geneva. Its outcome will determine whether the Pandemic Agreement - adopted in May 2025 - delivers real equity or repeats the failures of COVID-19.
Pandemic Agreement Annex on PABS - Pedro Villardi, PSI’s Global coordinator for Health Equity
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Thank you, Mr President,
Public Services International is a global trade union federation representing more than 15 million healthcare workers.
We are not discussing open science. If the countries now pushing for unrestricted access to pathogens, genetic sequences and information were concerned about that, the TRIPS waiver would have been approved without delay during the pandemic. Open access does not mean data extractivism, but rather preventing the monopolisation and privatisation of health technologies.
Therefore, biodiverse countries should not be asked to sign an instrument that will institutionalise their exchange without mechanisms to prevent the privatisation of the benefits derived from it.
PABS databases must have mandatory features such as user registration, data access agreements, the assignment of unique persistent identifiers to PABS materials, and transparent, legally binding provisions for subsequent exchange. Without this, the system will prioritise the needs of corporations over those of patients or healthcare workers. This undermines the work of the INB itself, which included in Article 7 the guarantee of ‘priority access to health technologies’ for healthcare workers. Worse still: it will institutionalise the cruel notion that some lives are worth more than others.
Countries must work towards a PABS system that operationalises predictability, legal certainty and global solidarity. A fair and equitable PABS system can save lives. We must not use multilateralism as a pretext to legalise continued extractivism and preventable deaths.
Baba Aye, PSI’s Health and Social Care Services Sector Officer, delivered a separate intervention on behalf of the Geneva Global Health Hub (G2H2), highlighting the need for a truly binding system that prevents biopiracy and guarantees fair access to vaccines, treatments and diagnostics for all countries.
Video
The sixth meeting of the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) runs from 23–28 March in Geneva. Its outcome will determine whether the Pandemic Agreement - adopted in May 2025 - delivers real equity or repeats the failures of COVID-19.
Pandemic Agreement Annex on PABS - Baba Aye, PSI’s Health and Social Care Services Sector Officer
Read Full Statement Here
Thank you, chair,
PSI is a global union federation representing more than 30 million workers around the world, more than half of which are from the health sector.
This discussion is not about open science or open access. If the countries that are now pushing for unrestricted access to pathogens, genetic sequences and information were concerned with open access, then the TRIPS Waiver would have been approved without delay during the pandemic. Open access means impeding the monopolization and privatization of technologies
Therefore, biodiverse countries should not be asked to sign an instrument that will institutionalize their sharing without mechanisms preventing the privatization of benefits derived from this.
This discussion is happening because COVID-19 pandemic proved that there is an unbalance that needs to be made right. PABS databases must have mandatory features like user registration, data access agreements, attaching unique persistent identifiers to PABS materials, and transparent and legally binding onward-sharing provisions. Without this, the PABS system will put the needs of commercial manufacturers first, not patients or health workers. This undermines Article 7’s requirement to ensure "priority access to health technologies” for healthcare and essential workers. Even worse: it will institutionalize the cruel understanding that some lives are worth more than others.
Countries must work towards a PABS system that operationalizes predictability, legal certainty and global solidarity. A fair and equitable ABS system can save lives. A system with loopholes will sanction continued extractivism and avoidable deaths. Delegations should not be pressured to adopt an unbalanced text that is only in the interests of developed countries and corporations.
The PABS system is designed to ensure that countries sharing pathogens and genetic sequence data receive timely, guaranteed benefits in return — addressing the deep inequities exposed during the last pandemic. Developing nations are pushing for enforceable equity measures, while richer countries largely defend the current voluntary approach.
With only days left before the May 2026 World Health Assembly deadline, PSI and its civil society allies are calling on governments to deliver a fair, transparent and legally robust PABS annex that learns the lessons of COVID-19.
A joint explainer video by PSI, Third World Network and G2H2 further breaks down the battle over PABS:
Video
The world has adopted a Pandemic Treaty to prevent future health emergencies and avoid the inequities of COVID-19. But a core piece is still unresolved: the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing System (PABS), which would govern how pathogens and sequence data are shared and how benefits like vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics are distributed.
Pandemic Agreement - the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing System explainer
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On May 20, 2025, the 78th World Health Assembly adopted the WHO Pandemic Agreement after three years of INB negotiations. Consensus was not reached on Article 12 (Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing, PABS). An Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) was established to negotiate a PABS annex. The sixth meeting is scheduled for March 23–28, 2026, with adoption expected at WHA79 in May 2026.
