The WHO Pandemic Agreement reflects the tension between national sovereignty and global solidarity. Critically examine, highlighting India's stakes.

The 78th World Health Assembly adopted the WHO Pandemic Agreement (PA) through resolution WHA78.1 in May 2025 [1]. The vote was 124 in favour, none against and 11 abstentions [2]. The text protects sovereignty, but that protection weakens the solidarity it promises.

Solidarity: What the PA Achieves

• Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) system (Art. 12): it links the sharing of pathogen samples with the sharing of benefits. Participating manufacturers must give WHO 20% of real-time pandemic production, and at least 10% of it must be a donation [1].
• Diversified production (Art. 10): the Parties will support manufacturing facilities in developing countries [1].
• TRIPS–Doha flexibilities reaffirmed (Art. 11.4): countries keep the right to put public health ahead of patents [1].

Sovereignty: How It Limits Solidarity

• Explicit safeguard: Art. 22.2 denies WHO any power to order lockdowns, travel bans or vaccine mandates [1]. Russia still abstained, citing sovereignty concerns [2].
• Voluntary technology transfer: transfer happens only "as mutually agreed". States merely encourage patent holders to lower royalties [1].
• Soft compliance: the compliance mechanism is "non-adversarial, non-punitive" and can only make non-binding recommendations [1].
• Unfinished core: the PA opens for signature only after the PABS annex is adopted (Art. 31.2) [1]. The annex talks had reached their eighth round by September 2026 [3].

India's Stakes

• Gains: PABS must "facilitate the manufacture and export" of vaccines and diagnostics (Art. 12.5(f)) [1]. This suits India's export-oriented vaccine industry.
• Concessions: Indian firms that join PABS would owe WHO 20% of their output, which limits supplying Indian buyers first. India's national access and benefit-sharing rules must also align with the annex (Art. 12.5(d)(ii)) [1].
• Dual role: India both supplies pathogen data and produces vaccines. This lets it bridge North–South positions.
• Negotiating priority: India should push for standard contracts on the model of the 2011 Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP) Framework [4]. These would define "participating manufacturer" and "affordable price" before the next outbreak, not during it.

The PA balances sovereignty and solidarity by giving up enforcement in exchange for consensus. Its promise of equity therefore depends on the PABS annex. India should use its Global South leadership and manufacturing strength to secure a transparent, standard PABS contract and early ratification. This would advance SDG 3 and the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, so that the next pandemic gets a fairer global response than COVID-19 did.