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Appeals stem from concerns about strict intellectual property rules hindering the production of affordable vaccines and medicines.
Hiroshima, Japan – Scientists have called on the Group of Seven to take urgent action to address the global lack of preparedness for the next pandemic, warning that developing countries still lack access to life-saving treatments and vaccines.
In an open letter published on the occasion of the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, the People’s Vaccine Alliance said the scientific advances made during the COVID-19 pandemic continue to primarily benefit the wealthiest countries and the operating results of pharmaceutical companies.
“It is critical that in the next health crisis the world takes prompt medical countermeasures in every country, regardless of their ability to pay. This requires removing any barrier to the development and production of medicines and vaccines – an area where the world failed during the COVID-19 and AIDS pandemics,” the group said.
“Enforcing strict intellectual property rules secured monopolies for pharmaceutical companies and prevented the widespread production of affordable generic vaccines and medicines in developing countries.”
The alliance, which includes more than 100 former world leaders, Nobel laureates, scientists and economists, said it is concerned that pharmaceutical companies have been lobbying world leaders to take a “maximalist approach” to intellectual property rules for vaccines and treatments.
Last month, pharmaceutical CEOs met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who hosts the G7, to lobby for intellectual property rights protection amid calls from public health experts to suspend such rules.
“As leaders of the G7, you have the power to influence how the world chooses to prepare for and respond to future pandemics,” the group said. “We hope you stand with scientists and physicians in support of equity and the right to life over the right to gain windfall from a health emergency.”
The leaders of the G7 – the United States, Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy – will meet in Hiroshima from Friday for a three-day summit expected to be dominated by Russia’s war in Ukraine and concerns over the growing growth of China. power and influence.
The World Health Organization earlier this month declared the end of the COVID-19 pandemic a global health emergency.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said while the end of the pandemic was a cause for celebration, the world must learn from mistakes that have resulted in unnecessary loss of life.
“COVID has changed our world, and it has changed us,” Tedros said. “That’s the way it should be. If we all go back to how things were before COVID-19, we haven’t learned our lessons and we’ve failed future generations.”
Nearly 7 million people died during the pandemic, according to WHO, although the true death toll is believed to be significantly higher than official figures.
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