Third World Network

TWN's new research presented at #AIDS2026 reveals Gilead has filed for 18 secondary patents in India alone in a bid to extend its monopoly & charge high prices. 📌In Rio for #AIDS2026? Connect with the TWN team and learn how you can fight for access to lenacapavir.

1 in 3 people cannot afford to eat a healthy diet, a new report by five UN agencies warned, urging the need for affordability. Government policies had typically focused on subsidising cereals rather than meat, dairy, fruit and vegetables. theguardian.com/global-develop…

🇿🇦12 years since PharmaGate exposed Big Pharma’s efforts to weaken South Africa’s patent law. Yet this framework remains. Candice Sehoma (@MSF_southafrica) and Tendai Mafuma (@SECTION27news) inquire why these injustices have still not been reversed. iol.co.za/pretoria-news/…

A new research paper finds that catch-up development is largely a myth. Since 1960, the income gap between advanced economies (the core) and developing economies (the periphery) has widened by 170–270%, depending on the currency concept. Global inequality is getting worse.

🇮🇳The Supreme Court of India decided to consider the price of breast cancer medicines tomorrow. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in India & treatment can cost around 1,100 dollars per month. The Court's record of upholding the right to health gives us hope ✨

✊Our coalition's complaint to the UN Special Rapporteur has been featured in the Johns Hopkins newsletter today. The complaint raises concerns about how the EU, Norway, Switzerland & Japan's positions in the WHO risk undermining the right to health. mailchi.mp/50a370ba4ada/g…

🟥NGOs allege rights abuses by Western countries "(Europe, Norway, Switzerland & Japan) talk about international solidarity & equity, but it’s only aspirational, not something they want to concretise," said Sangeeta Shashikant on the PABS negotiations. genevasolutions.news/global-health/…

On behalf of @UNUGlobalHealth’s leadership, we are delighted to congratulate Dr. Mariangela Batista Galvao Simao (@mariangelasimao), a valued member of our International Advisory Board, on her appointment by the United Nations Human Rights Council (@UN_HRC) as the new 𝗨𝗡 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝘂𝗿 on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. This is a richly deserved recognition of Dr. Simão's decades of leadership in global health and human rights. Her insight and expertise have been invaluable to our Advisory Board, and we look forward to her continued impact in this vital new role. Congratulations, Dr Simão!

A global public good can't rest on unequal obligations. As WHO negotiators reconvene in Geneva, former Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi and AHF President Michael Weinstein call for a Pandemic Agreement with mandatory, enforceable benefit-sharing. healthpolicy-watch.news/an-equitable-p…

🌍⚽ World Cup fans don't only cheer for their home teams, but also for countries they feel connected to. Shared histories of colonialism are brought to the fore and Global South solidarity becomes palpable. Millions of fans understand the need for unity and alliance. With this, we reflect on Pan-Africanist unity against colonialism, apartheid, and neocolonial domination. These leaders dedicated their lives to the struggle for national liberation and sovereignty. Their memory continues to shape today's struggle against neocolonialism and imperialism. Scroll through to read about each leader, and to view artwork by Othman GhàlMi

📊 ¿Qué pasa cuando las reglas fiscales se diseñan pensando más en los indicadores que en las personas? En América Latina, estos marcos pueden limitar el espacio fiscal para financiar derechos, inversión social, cuidados y acción climática. 📥 Descarga el informe completo y conoce el análisis sobre la vigencia de las reglas fiscales en la región: bit.ly/4f0BeeB

"Every contract not concluded at the time of access leaves the world less prepared." At #IGWG7, TWN called for legal certainty to ensure that pathogen data shared by developing countries and used to develop health products are shared equitably. twn.my/files/20260706…

🗣️"Intellectual property became a vehicle for extraction". At #WIPO's General Assembly, TWN warned that in 2023 alone, low- & middle-income countries paid 97.9 billion in royalties while receiving only 16.6 billion, a deficit of 589%. twn.my/files/20260708… 📸Marek Ślusarczyk

"The EU has insisted on the unrestricted right of users to seek & enforce intellectual property monopolies over products developed through access to pathogen materials & sequence information, which can hinder both Research & Development and access," says the letter.

The PABS System could make a more equitable sharing of vaccines, therapeutics & diagnostics. WHO would be supplied with stockpiles by manufacturers & developing countries would be licensed to manufacture. ✊🌍Tell leaders to make this a reality: fairpabs.com

Norway, with the world’s richest sovereign fund, should be leading on global health solidarity, not crushing health equity in the @WHO_int Pandemic Agreement. #FairPABS

With AI 🤖 dangerous pathogens can be easily created. 🦠The PABS System involves sharing sequences of pandemic pathogens. This requires biosecurity measures & accountability. Yet, the EU resists user registration & champions anonymous access, putting the world at risk. #FairPABS

COVID-19 could have unfolded very differently if more manufacturers in the Global South had been able to produce vaccines and diagnostics at scale 💉💊 🌍The PABS System can change that by guaranteeing licensing to the Global South & delivering equitable access. #FairPABS

13 CSOs call on the UN to investigate the EU, Norway, Japan, and Switzerland’s role in undermining the ‘right to health’ in WHO Pandemic Negotiations, Their positions weaken benefit-sharing and risk COVID-era inequities. outlookindia.com/healthcare-spo…

Advocacy group calls for urgent revision of NLEM as crucial drugs for treating cancer, diabetes omitted from list newindianexpress.com/lifestyle/heal… @NewIndianXpress @TheMornStandard @CDSCO_INDIA_INF @MoHFW_INDIA @a2mindia @3rdworldnetwork @JPNadda @OfficeofJPNadda @PMOIndia