Rein in the Vaccine Nationalism

Context: While there are numerous threats to vaccine distribution, global measures and institutions provide a mechanism for equitable distribution of the vaccine.

Threats in vaccines distribution:

• Profiteering: It is a crime against humanity to make a profit during a tragedy; For e,g. companies have made enor­mous profits in the supply of personal protective equipment and kits and ventilators.
• Vaccine nationalism: undermines equitable access to vaccines. For e.g. the Advance Purchase Agreements that some countries have negotiated exemplify such adverse trends.

Mechanisms for Equitable Access of COVID-19 technologies :

• Focus on prioritising high-risk groups: Global Alliance for Vaccine Initiative (GAVI) for pooled procurement and equitable supply of life-saving vaccines to low- and middle-income countries.
• Voluntary pool: The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) idea to collect patent rights, regulatory test data, and other information that could be shared for developing COVID-19 therapies and vaccines.
• Treating COVID-19 technologies as a “public good”- a common property of the nation and such goods are not excludable, or there should not be any rivalries in dealing with it.
  • Provisions for compulsory licensing: can be used against the advance purchase and hoarding of a COVID-19 vaccine produced in India by multinational pharma companies.
    • It is an “involuntary contract” issued by the national government between a “willing buyer” or local manufacturer and an “unwilling seller” or patent holder foreign company.
    • Provisions under: Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and Doha Ministerial Conference 2001.
    • India utilised this provision to grant a licence to Natco Pharma (against Bayer) to manufacture a life­ saving anti­cancer drug for kidney and liver tumours, with 97% cost reduction.
    • India and South Africa jointly proposed a waiver of the protection of copyright, design, trademarks and patent on COVID­19 related technologies including vaccines.
  • Global campaigns to forgo trade profits for a humanitarian cause: must be initiated by the United Nations (UN) organisation such as the WTO.
    • Media and civil society organisations can garner enough momentum to exert pressure on TRIPS.

Conclusion: Solidarity between nations is a recognition of the need to: prevent further destruction, rescue and evacuate affected people to safer zones, and salvage belongings and meet their minimal survival needs.