Current Affairs · · GS2 · International Relations

India seeks equity as WHO pandemic pact awaits a pathogen-sharing deal

At a UN high-level meeting on pandemic preparedness in September 2026, India called for solidarity and fair access to vaccines and medicines. The WHO Pandemic Agreement, adopted in 2025, cannot open for signature until countries agree on how pathogens and the benefits from them will be shared. Those talks have been extended to 2027.

Event date:

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  1. Context1 / 5
    • India spoke at the UN High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response in New York in September 2026. It was represented by the Union Health Secretary.
    • India called for solidarity and fair access to health products, citing its supply of about 300 million vaccine doses to around 100 countries during COVID-19. It framed its approach as "One Earth, One Health".
    • The WHO Pandemic Agreement was adopted by the World Health Assembly in May 2025. It needs a Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) annex before countries can sign it.
    • Talks on the annex failed to conclude before the May 2026 World Health Assembly. Negotiations have been extended, with the annex due by the May 2027 Assembly at the latest.
  2. Key concepts2 / 5

    1. What is PABS?

    A system for sharing samples and genetic sequences of pathogens with pandemic potential quickly, and for sharing the benefits fairly. Those benefits include vaccines, medicines, diagnostics and technology.

    2. Why is it hard to agree?

    Think of it as a recipe exchange. Developing countries share the ingredients, meaning virus samples, but often cannot afford the finished dish, meaning the vaccines. They want guaranteed access in return. Manufacturers and richer countries want predictable rules and protection for intellectual property.

    3. What are the sticking points?

    WHO says negotiators still disagree on how benefits are defined and shared, on the contracts behind the system, and on how it should be governed. The divide runs mainly between developing-country groups, such as the Africa Group, and industrialised countries.

    The table contrasts the main negotiating positions.

    GroupMain demand
    Developing countries, such as the Africa Group and the Group for EquityA binding share of vaccines and medicines, and transfer of technology
    Industrialised countries and manufacturersRapid access to pathogens, legal certainty, and protection of innovation

    This card sets out documented positions. It does not adjudicate between them.

  3. Key highlights3 / 5
    • Pharmaceutical strength. India is a major producer of vaccines and generic medicines. Vaccine Maitri showed that it can supply other countries in a crisis.
    • Import dependence. India still imports many active pharmaceutical ingredients and advanced technologies, a weakness exposed during COVID-19.
    • An interest in benefit-sharing. As a biodiverse country that may share pathogen samples, India gains from guaranteed access to the resulting products.
    • Digital health. India launched the Global Initiative on Digital Health during its 2023 G20 presidency, to link national digital health systems.
    • A bridge-builder. India can try to reconcile the Global South's demand for equity with the Global North's concerns about innovation.
    • Sovereignty. The Agreement does not give WHO power to impose lockdowns or vaccine mandates. National governments keep control of domestic measures.
  4. Note4 / 5

    Building preparedness at home

    • Surveillance. Expand genomic sequencing and laboratory networks. The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) showed the value of tracking variants during COVID-19.
    • One Health. Most new infections jump from animals to humans. Linking human, animal and environmental surveillance helps spot threats early.
    • Manufacturing. Reduce dependence on imported ingredients, through schemes such as the Production Linked Incentive scheme.
    • Research. Invest in mRNA and other next-generation vaccine platforms.
  5. Way forward5 / 5

    These are suggested measures, not adopted policy.

    • Push for a transparent PABS system that ties fast access to pathogens to fair sharing of the benefits.
    • Share Indian expertise in vaccines, diagnostics and digital health with low- and middle-income countries.
    • Seek predictable financing for preparedness through the G20 and BRICS, rather than relying on aid after a crisis.
    • Promote licensed technology transfer and joint research, while protecting the incentive to innovate.
    • Build regional production of ingredients, vaccines and diagnostics, to make supply chains more resilient.

Sources

Syllabus

PaperSubjectSub-topic
GS2International RelationsImportant international institutions, agencies and fora
GS2Social JusticeIssues relating to health
GS3Science & TechnologyScience and technology: vaccines and genomic surveillance
PSIRInternational RelationsGlobal governance and India's role in multilateral institutions; the North-South divide
PrelimsInternational RelationsWHO; the Pandemic Agreement; the International Health Regulations; One Health

Topics

International Relations and Current AffairsBiotechnologyDiseasesHealth

Practice questions

  1. With reference to the WHO Pandemic Agreement, consider the following statements: 1. It was adopted by the World Health Assembly in 2025. 2. It can open for signature only after the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing annex is adopted. 3. It empowers WHO to impose lockdowns on member countries. Which of the statements given above are correct?

    1. 1 and 2 only
    2. 2 and 3 only
    3. 1 and 3 only
    4. 1, 2 and 3
    Show answer

    Answer: A. Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Statement 3 is wrong, and it is the most common misconception about the Agreement: it confers no power on WHO to impose lockdowns, travel restrictions or vaccine mandates, and decisions on domestic measures remain with national governments.

    Difficulty: medium · statement

  2. The "One Health" approach refers to which one of the following?

    1. A single global health insurance scheme
    2. Integrated surveillance of human, animal and environmental health
    3. A WHO fund for pandemic financing
    4. Universal vaccination with one combined vaccine
    Show answer

    Answer: B. One Health treats human, animal and environmental health as a single connected system. It matters for preparedness because most new human infections originate in animals, so watching animal populations and habitats can give warning before a pathogen reaches people.

    Difficulty: easy · statement

  3. INSACOG, seen in the news, is associated with which one of the following?

    1. Genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 variants
    2. Vaccine export licensing
    3. Telemedicine services
    4. Antimicrobial resistance monitoring in livestock
    Show answer

    Answer: A. The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium is a network of laboratories that sequenced the virus and tracked the emergence of variants during the pandemic. Its value was in spotting changes in the virus early enough to inform the public health response.

    Difficulty: easy · statement

Mains practice

Answer-writing practice on this article. Attempt it first, then open the hints.

  1. GS2 · 250 words

    "Pathogen sharing without benefit sharing deepens health inequity." Examine with reference to the PABS annex of the WHO Pandemic Agreement.

    Show hints
    1. Start from the COVID-19 experience, where countries that shared samples and sequence data were often last in the queue for the vaccines developed from them.
    2. Explain what the annex is meant to cover: rapid access to pathogens on one side, and a defined share of vaccines, medicines, diagnostics and technology on the other.
    3. Set out the positions without endorsing either, with developing-country groups seeking binding shares and transfer of technology, and industrialised countries seeking speed, legal certainty and protection of innovation.
    4. Explain why the Agreement cannot open for signature until this is settled, which gives the annex leverage disproportionate to its length.
    5. Conclude on India's dual position, as both a country that may share samples and a major manufacturer of the products derived from them.
  2. GS2 · 150 words

    How can India combine domestic preparedness with global health leadership?

    Show hints
    1. Ground preparedness in surveillance, using the genomics consortium built during the pandemic as the model for sustained laboratory capacity.
    2. Explain the One Health case for linking human, animal and environmental monitoring, since most new infections cross from animals.
    3. Address the supply-side weakness, namely dependence on imported active pharmaceutical ingredients, and the schemes meant to reduce it.
    4. Connect capability to diplomacy, since the ability to supply vaccines and diagnostics is what makes offers of help credible.
    5. Conclude on the bridging role, reconciling demands for equity with the concerns of manufacturers about innovation.