African countries want information about pathogens with the potential to cause pandemics to be shared “exclusively” through a global system currently being negotiated at the World Health Organization (WHO) – yet at the same time, their governments are under pressure to agree to bilateral Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with the United States that will trade their pathogen information for health aid.

“We envision a PABS [Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing] system that ensures that all PABS materials and sequence information flow exclusively through the [WHO] system,” said Zimbabwe, speaking on behalf of 50 African member states.

He was addressing the Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG), charged with negotiating the PABS system, at the end of last week’s text-based negotiations.

Once agreed, the PABS system will become an annex to the WHO’s Pandemic Agreement, setting out how information about pathogens with pandemic potential is shared in a safe, transparent and accountable manner, and how those who share this information will benefit from vaccines, diagnostics and therapeautics that are developed as a result.