WTO members agree to temporarily lift Covid vaccine patents to tackle vaccine inequality

The World Trade Organisation agreed on Friday to temporarily lift patents on Covid-19 vaccines after two years of bruising negotiations, but experts expressed scepticism that the deal will have a major impact on global vaccination inequality.

The unprecedented agreement, sealed by all 164 WTO members after late-night overtime talks, will grant developing countries the right to produce Covid-19 vaccines for five years "without the consent of the right holder".

Since October 2020, South Africa and India have called for intellectual property rights for coronavirus vaccines to be temporarily lifted so they can boost production to address the gaping inequality in access between rich and poor nations.

But Friday's compromise fell short of their earlier requests that the waiver apply to all countries – and also cover Covid tests and treatments.

Read More : https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/2022/06/18/wto-members-agree-to-temporarily-lift-covid-vaccine-patents-to-tackle-vaccine-inequality/