Making health products a global commons

Limiting medical privatization

The covid-19 pandemic was not over as of this writing. Nonetheless, most states have moved to an approach where we will have to live with this mutating virus, even if it means offering vaccines to those at risk and willing. This is the beginning of a reflection on this major pandemic that has been rather poorly managed. In fact, while the crisis was global, solutions such as vaccination were still based on market logic. Many African or South American countries were slow to get the cures, adding to their balance sheets.

So what would be the response when another pandemic arrives? The Agence Française de Développement organized a roundtable for various speakers to give their views on the issue. From these exchanges, a clear observation emerged: it is time for health products to become part of the global commons. An idea that is even more crucial in a crisis that is killing people and affecting so many.

The difficulty will be that philosophy changes in countries like the United States or the European Union, which do not want to harm their researchers. The latter being already poorly paid, the question of a public remuneration would on the other hand oblige laboratories to participate in the global welfare. This would not prevent patent-related royalties, but they would no longer be able to blackmail poor countries.

Time: 2:19