India roots for benefits system at pandemic agreement talks

Ahead of the countries’ crucial meeting in Geneva this month, India has found common cause in which they must agree on a rulebook accompanying the so-called ‘Pandemic Agreement’, with a coalition of developing countries – called the Equity Group – saying that developing countries that share pathogen materials and genetic sequence data should receive fair, tangible and legally enforceable benefits in return.

The World Health Organization (WHO) Pandemic Agreement was adopted by the World Health Assembly on 20 May 2025 and was developed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has revealed significant gaps and inequalities in the world’s ability to prevent and respond to health emergencies, spurring countries to take action.

The purpose of the body was to draft and negotiate a WHO convention, agreement, or other international instrument on epidemic prevention, preparedness, and response that would result in a legally binding international instrument. Once adopted, the next step was for the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) on the Pandemic Agreement to negotiate the details of the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) system, which would form an ‘annex’ to the Agreement. The full agreement, expected in May 2026, will be open to countries to sign and ratify it according to their own constitutional processes once it is adopted by the World Health Assembly. The agreement will officially enter into force 30 days after 60 countries ratify it.

An important point being discussed is how biological samples of viruses and bacteria, as well as other life forms, that may be linked to epidemics or public health emergencies should be shared with international laboratory networks. These should not just be physical samples, but also the genetic sequence of these life forms. Developing countries say a system of standard, legally binding contracts should govern every stage of pathogen and sequence data sharing. Any organization that touches PABS materials or sequence information, whether a laboratory within the WHO Coordinated Laboratory Network or a private pharmaceutical company outside it, must sign enforceable agreements that include benefit-sharing obligations. But Nithin Ramakrishnan of the Third World Network said what defines networks and whether there is a comprehensive list governing them is a moot point. A group that follows the negotiations.

Key agreement: About the draft WHO Pandemic Agreement

These benefits could mean that those who commercialize products derived from PABS materials pay a percentage of annual revenue back into the system. Non-monetary benefits include requirements that manufacturers reserve a percentage of real-time production of pandemic products for WHO (with at least 10% to be donated), grant non-exclusive licenses to developing country manufacturers in emergency situations, and offer products at affordable or not-for-profit prices. The ‘capital group’ insists that physical materials and digital series information must be traceable to the country of origin and that access to PABS materials requires prior informed consent of the providing party – their submission shows.

A submission by the European Union suggests a preference for such agreements to be more “voluntary” in nature. Manufacturers are encouraged, rather than forced, to enter into legally binding contracts with WHO. The architecture relies on attracting adequate producer participation through incentives rather than mandating it through regulation. The EU accepts a 10% donation floor in pandemic emergencies, and this is in line with Equity Group’s figures. “Currently, the system works as one-way traffic. Since it is not a legally binding system, countries providing biological material or sequences receive little benefit. The World Health Organization is not transparent and seems to want to continue protecting this extraction system,” said KM Gopakumar, Senior Researcher and Legal Advisor, Third World Network (TWN). India is represented by officials in the Ministry of Health as well as diplomats in Geneva, where negotiations are ongoing.