The civil society workshop on “Learning from Covid-19 Pandemic: Critical Policies to Ensure Access to Medicines and Vaccines in Nepal” concluded in Kathmandu. The workshop held on 28-29 July 2022 was jointly organized by NGO Federation of Nepal, Nepal SDGs Forum, Third World Network, and The People’s Vaccine Alliance Nepal. Covid-19 pandemic has brought to light some critical concerns over access, equity and economy of the vaccine and medicines to the poor people and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and underdeveloped nations. Not only the access and coverage of Covid-19 vaccines, but a wide range of exclusionary provisions in the areas of public health and public good were discussed. Countering or readjustments in intellectual property rights, patent rights, TRIPS agreement, and WTO provisions are essential to protect public health and welfare in the countries like Nepal. While Nepal prepares for graduation from LDC status, Nepal needs to prepare with policy provisions and negotiation in order to protect the rights, preferential treatments and privileges, particularly in health and medicines. Essential public healthcare and medicines must not be the globalized business. WHO and WTO must accommodate and be concerned with this, and technology concerning basic public health should be differently treated in terms of intellectual property rights and patent rights. Accessibility and affordability to the weak people and national economies is a fundamental agenda. This is not a charity but rights and justice. A range of measures would be necessary to improve the accessibility and equity in vaccines and essential medicines. Government can facilitate and provide compulsory licensing. Whenever there is a public health emergency of international concern declared, intellectual property rights and patent on the related medicines need to be waived. In this relation, civil society needs to engage with their own governments, not only get focused to developed nations. Supply of life-saving commodity must not be constrained by other business and profit-oriented provisions. Affordability of healthcare beyond LDC graduation are critical concerns for Nepal. If Nepal has to fulfil the compliance with related laws and conditions, in the same way as the developed nations, how the government will be able to ensure health services and medication to everyone’s access are critical challenges and which Nepal needs to prepare for. Health services must be looked at from social justice perspective. Multitude of problems like increasing debt, dependence on remittance, decreasing international grants, and trade imbalance are challenges not only for LDC graduation but also beyond. Community systems strengthening, revisiting procurement system and price negotiations were some of the ideas recommended in the workshop. The workshop was very useful and effective in sharing of ideas and capacity building of the CSO workers in Nepal. How the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and recognition of patent rights can constraints to the countries like Nepal and what needs to be done by civil society and government were discussed. By learning from Covid-19, it is high time we prepared for access to medicines and vaccines in Nepal.
NewsNational