India at UN: Nations sharing pathogen samples must get fair access to vaccines and medicines

India has called for a global system that guarantees countries which share pathogens and biological resources during a health emergency timely access to the vaccines, diagnostics, medicines and technologies developed from them.

The demand was made at the United Nations High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response in New York. India said the credibility of the World Health Organization's Pandemic Agreement would depend on a fair Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing (PABS) system.

Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava told the meeting that countries contributing pathogens should receive the benefits arising from their use, while their national sovereignty is respected. She said the ongoing negotiations on the PABS system should not be prejudged, and that implementation should take into account differing national circumstances and capacities.

India's position draws on its experience during the Covid-19 pandemic, when access to vaccines and treatments was uneven across countries. New Delhi has argued that the benefits of shared biological material should flow back to the countries that provide it, particularly those with limited capacity to manufacture vaccines and medicines on their own.

India also asked that digital public infrastructure be recognised as a global public good. It cited the role such systems played during the pandemic in disease surveillance, vaccination drives, risk communication, supply chains and the continuity of health services.

The country pointed to its own contribution during Covid-19, saying it supplied 300 million vaccine doses to about 100 countries and two UN entities, and provided medical assistance to more than 150 countries.

On preparedness, India outlined measures it is taking, including expanding laboratory networks, strengthening emergency coordination, building up the health workforce, maintaining stockpiles and increasing clinical care capacity. It said pandemic preparedness must remain rooted in national health systems and domestic financing, with international assistance playing a complementary role.

India also called for equity and global solidarity to remain central to preparations for future outbreaks.

The WHO Pandemic Agreement was adopted in May 2025 with the aim of strengthening global readiness for future pandemics. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called for urgent completion of negotiations on the PABS system, warning that delays could weaken the world's ability to respond to future pandemics.

The PABS framework is intended to create a link between the sharing of pathogen samples — genetic material from viruses and other disease-causing organisms — and the sharing of the benefits that arise from research on them, such as vaccines and treatments. Negotiations on its details remain contested, with countries divided over how obligations on manufacturers and on sample-sharing nations should be defined.

The meeting in New York brought member states together to review progress on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response. India's interventions placed access and equity at the centre of that discussion.

India is among the world's largest manufacturers of vaccines, and its position in the talks carries weight: agreements on pathogen sharing and benefit distribution directly affect the cost and speed at which countries can produce vaccines and treatments during an outbreak.

India's stance reflects a longstanding position in global health negotiations — that preparedness frameworks must balance obligations with the capacities of individual countries, and that access to lifesaving products should not depend on where a person lives or on a country's ability to pay.