India urges fair pathogen access and benefit sharing under WHO Pandemic Agreement

At a UN high‑level meeting on pandemic prevention and response in New York, Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava has called for fair Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) system under the WHO Pandemic Agreement, an official statement said on Saturday. Countries contributing pathogens and biological resources must receive timely access to vaccines, diagnostics, therapeutics, technologies and other benefits, she said.

Srivastava reaffirmed India’s commitment to strengthening global health security through international cooperation and stressed the need to translate the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic into sustained investment, institutional capacity and resilient health systems. Such efforts must be rooted in national health systems, development plans and domestic financing, with international assistance complementing national responsibility, she added. Srivastava outlined India’s coordinated approach to pandemic prevention and response across government and society, which covers a wide range of potential health emergencies, according to Health Ministry.

She outlined the country's efforts to expand laboratory networks, emergency coordination, health workforce, stockpiles and clinical care capacity to ensure that systems are equipped to respond effectively to health emergencies. Drawing on India’s experience during COVID-19 pandemic, Srivastava called for digital public infrastructure to be recognised as a global public good.

She stressed the role of digital solutions in surveillance, vaccination, risk communication, supply chains and continuity of health services during the pandemic. India supplied 300 million vaccine doses to around 100 countries and two UN entities, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and provided medical assistance to over 150 countries, reflecting commitment to the principle of “One Earth, One Health” and to the Global South. WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus pointed to the progress made in strengthening the global health security architecture since COVID-19, including the WHO Pandemic Agreement and amendments to the International Health Regulations. He stressed the urgency of concluding negotiations on the PABS system, noting that delays could affect the world’s ability to respond to future pandemics.

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