Reaction to India and South Africa proposal for Covid vaccine

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Responding to South Africa and India’s proposal to waive provisions of the World Trade Organisation’s TRIPS Agreement that protect intellectual property rights, for the prevention, containment and treatment of Covid-19, Anna Marriott, Oxfam’s Health Policy Lead said:

“This welcome proposal seeks to put the right to health of all people before the profits of a handful of pharmaceutical corporations and should be widely supported.

“World leaders have said Covid-19 vaccines and treatments must be global public goods but today they remain the private property of pharmaceutical companies.

“Sharing research and data at this time of unprecedented global crisis is the fastest route to a people’s vaccine and to scale up its production for all.”

Ends

Notes to editors:

The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights – TRIPS – is an international legal agreement between all member nations of the World Trade Organisation which sets out rules for the application of intellectual property rights – including patent rights.

A copy of the proposal is available here

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