Will Countries Begin Text-Based Negotiations for a Pandemic Agreement Next Week: The What, How and Why Not? [PRIMER INB8]

Newsletter Edition #64 [Treaty Talks]

Hi,

As WHO member states begin the final lap of intense negotiations on reforming the governance to health emergencies, the burden of expectations to reach an agreement in less than three months is getting acute.

Time is of essence and yet….

It is still not certain whether discussions at the forthcoming meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body, will result in concrete negotiations. We are effectively at the doorstep of the May 2024 deadline.

It is baffling that at this late stage of these discussions towards a new pandemic agreement, the plan for next week appears to be unclear with many countries not having enough clarity on the modalities of the process as they head into the two-week marathon negotiations this month. At a briefing this week, the INB Bureau reportedly said that the upcoming meeting will aim to bring countries closer on conceptual issues and that text-based negotiations is expected during the subsequent INB meeting in March.

In this edition, we bring you a primer on the state of play in these discussions and also discuss text of the proposals that will be considered next week.

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Best,

Priti

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Illustration Credit: Amy Clarke, Chembe Collaborative

I. STORY OF THE WEEK: [PRIMER INB8]

Will Countries Begin Text-Based Negotiations for a Pandemic Agreement Next Week? The What, How and Why Not.

One would have expected greater urgency as days fly off the calendar heading into May 2024 – the deadline to conclude negotiations on a new Pandemic Agreement.

At the cusp of a two-week marathon negotiating session during February 19^th - March 1st, the Bureau of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body told countries and nonstate actors this week, that the talks during the 8^th meeting of the INB would essentially involve discussions on concepts of the provisions, and text-based negotiations are planned only for the next meeting in March (18^th-March 29th).

While the divergences between countries on key issues continue to remain wide, the upcoming meeting will continue deliberations and consultations split across subgroups focussed on certain provisions in a bid to move positions closer. The plan is to build on a text in the course of the coming weeks, to be able to negotiate it during the 9^th meeting of the INB in March, before heading to the World Health Assembly in May 2024. Bureau officials reportedly also mentioned the possibility of an additional session in April.

Undoubtedly the distance between countries on a number of provisions is vast, but observers say that the remaining time should be devoted towards resuming text-based negotiations as soon as possible. By planning to limit negotiations on a new agreement to under 10 days, the process risks marginalising equity related proposals from developing countries, activists cautioned this week. 

For this story, we have reviewed the latest versions of key provisions that will be discussed at the INB next week. We also spoke with numerous negotiators and other experts on the brewing dynamics of this complex negotiation. In the coming weeks, we will follow up with in-depth analysis dedicated to key provisions as the discussions evolve in real-time. 

Image credit: Photo by Francesco Ungaro, Pexels