This round of negotiations marked another crucial step in the process of finalizing the pandemic agreement. However, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed his disappointment at the lack of significant progress: “Progress has been made, but not to the extent we had hoped for.” The urgency of a binding pandemic agreement has further increased after the WHO Director-General declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on August 14, 2024, due to the ongoing Mpox outbreak on the African continent. This escalation underscores the importance of globally coordinated pandemic preparedness and response measures and shows that a pandemic will not wait for negotiations to be concluded. The issue of the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing System (PABS) once again became a point of contention. While Dr. Tedros pushed for an agreement by the end of the year, key decisions were postponed again. Diplomats praised the efforts of the Bureau, in particular proposals by French Co-Chair Anne-Claire Amprou and Brazilian Vice-Chair Tovar da Silva Nunes. However, there are still significant differences regarding the sales quotas of pandemic-related products and the monetary and non-monetary benefits to be agreed under PABS. To finalize the agreement by a Special Session of the World Health Assembly in December 2024, significant progress would be needed in informal rounds during the month of October, as the next INB meeting is not scheduled until November 4-15, 2024.
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