This letter from more than 40 civil society organisations (CSOs) calls on the European Union (EU) to refrain from rushing World Trade Organization (WTO) members to rapidly adopt a purported proposal on intellectual property rights and COVID-19.
- This letter comes in addition to the MSF comments on the reported draft negotiation text.
- The text under consideration contains problematic and contradictory elements (see Annex) and remains largely insufficient as an effective pandemic response.
- The large majority of WTO members have not been part of the negotiations.
- The actual negotiated and adopted outcome should particularly reflect the interests of those most affected by access inequity in this pandemic.