Brazil Brings Technology Transfer into the G20 Fold

Newsletter Edition #236 [The Files In-Depth]

Hi,

COVID-19 saw export bans, unpredictable supply chains, and the stranglehold of monopolies that constrained the access to medical products, as millions perished.

Since then, a number of efforts have been undertaken in national and regional levels to diversify manufacturing of medical products. The latest of these, is the new Global Alliance for Local and Regional Production and Innovation - a push from Brazil’s G20 presidency.

In today’s edition we bring you a peek into the new Rio de Janeiro Declaration of the G20 Health Ministers from last week.

In the coming days, we will be publishing more editions than usual on account of an unusual news cycle that has relevance for global health discussions in Geneva. Thank you for your patience and for reading!

We are tracking Pandemic Agreement talks this week, that will also no doubt it colored by the American elections.

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Until later!

Priti

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Illustration Credit: Amy Clarke, Chembe Collaborative

I. STORY OF THE WEEK

Brazil Brings Technology Transfer into the G20 Fold

By Bianca Carvalho & Priti Patnaik

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A proposed Global Alliance for Local and Regional Production and Innovation was launched at the G20 Health Ministerial Meeting last week (October 29-31 2024) in Rio de Janeiro. Brazil holds G20 Presidency this year, and has led efforts towards such an alliance aimed at reducing reliance on a few countries for critical health supplies and enhancing global health equity. The G20 Presidency will be held by South Africa in 2025.

While the Rio de Janeiro Declaration of the G20 Health Ministers, among other issues,  highlights the importance of technology transfer it does not establish any compulsory or binding mechanisms to ensure technology transfer. Instead, the agreed language is limited to discussing the significance of technology transfer within a voluntary framework.

(The G20 is made up of Argentina, Australia, Brasil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Russia, Türkiye, UK and USA; and two regional bodies: the African Union and the European Union. The members of the G20 represent around 85% of the world's GDP, more than 75% of world trade and around two-thirds of the world's population.)

Image Credit: Photo by The Short Guy Films, Pexels