Key Issues and Future Directions in Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Treaty Negotiations

• ■The global experience of the COVID-19 pandemic heightened awareness of the importance of an international health security system to prevent, prepare for, and respond to infectious disease outbreaks.

• ■At the 77th World Health Assembly (May 27 - June 1, 2024), amendments aimed at promoting compliance with the existing International Health Regulations (2005) were adopted, though agreement on the pandemic treaty was not reached.

• ■A core issue in pandemic treaty negotiations is the establishment of a framework for pathogen access and benefit-sharing.

• ■Central to this framework are the development of a system including pathogens with pandemic potential and ensuring access to vaccines and other healthcare products.

KIHASA has published the 451st issue of the Health and Welfare Issues & Focus on "Key Issues and Future Directions in Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Treaty Negotiations: Focusing on Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing Framework." The lead author is Kim Su-Jin, Research Fellow of the Center for Health Insurance Research at KIHASA. 

Dr. Kim noted that “the rapid sharing of viral genomic sequence data during the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with unprecedented public and private funding, facilitated vaccine research, development and production. However, while some wealthy countries were discussing the administration of additional doses to their populations, the majority of citizens in developing countries, including healthcare workers, had not even received their first dose.” 

She also noted that this issue had been raised prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and was highlighted during the 2013 Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreaks, with continued calls for a framework to facilitate pathogen sample sharing and equitable benefit sharing.” -

According to Dr. Kim, “one of the key issues in the pandemic treaty negotiations is the establishment of a system for access to pathogens and the benefit-sharing. This is linked to ensuring equitable access to healthcare products, including vaccines, in response to criticism of developed countries’ excessive vaccine hoarding during the COVID-19 pandemic.” 

She emphasized: “In a global pandemic, high vaccination rates in some countries are not sufficient if other regions remain vulnerable, allowing new variants to emerge through reinfection. Efficient and systematic sharing of pathogens with pandemic potential will enhance global preparedness and protect public health not only in Korea, but worldwide.”  

This study examines the background, purpose, and scope of key instruments related to genetic resources, access to pathogens and benefit-sharing, and discusses their relevance to the pandemic treaty, as well as future implications and outlook, she said.

Summary of the Brief

The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the need to strengthen international health security to prevent, prepare for, and respond to infectious disease outbreaks, a recognition that led to the ongoing negotiations on a pandemic treaty. A major point of discussion is the esablishment of a pathogen access and benefit-sharing system, with a particular focus on ensuring equitable access to vaccines based on the COVID-19 pandemic assessments.

There are several systems for access to genetic resources and the sharing of benefits generated from their use, including the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Nagoya Protocol, and the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework. However, no such system currently exists for non-influenza pathogens and related genetic sequence data.

When developing a framework for access to and benefit-sharing of pathogens and genetic sequence data, the genetic sequence data sharing system used during the COVID-19 pandemic and the standard material transfer agreements of the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework could serve as useful references. However, further discussion will be needed.