Fiocruz publishes letter in defense of health sovereignty in the Global South

Representatives of ten organizations led by Fiocruz today signed the Rio de Janeiro Declaration, a letter in defense of health sovereignty in the innovation and development of diagnostics, vaccines and medicines to face international public health emergencies in the Global South. The document was released by the president of Fiocruz, Mario Moreira, during the closing of the Global Pandemic Preparedness Summit 2024, an event that took place on the 29th and 30th, in Rio de Janeiro.

Mario Moreira announces the Rio de Janeiro Declaration during the closing of GPPS 2024 (photo: Peter Ilicciev) 

Click here to read the full letter

“The Global South was the region that suffered most during the pandemic, with difficulties in accessing products, especially vaccines. What we propose in this letter is a new North-South relationship, in which the scientific and technological conditions of the countries of the Global South are respected, a better distribution of production is discussed and in which we can cooperate at different levels, based on respect and recognition that these countries have a lot to contribute to global preparation for new pandemics. Fiocruz led this process and had immediate support from our partners in the third sector, industry, financiers and advocacy institutions. It is a letter, therefore, with multiple signatures, but with the same objective: to make North-South relations fairer”, emphasizes the president of Fiocruz, Mario Moreira.

To overcome disparities in access between North and South, the Declaration emphasizes six central points, including the need to establish an Alliance for Regional and Local Production, Innovation and Access, as debated within the scope of the G20, and collaboration between regulatory agencies for regulatory convergence and harmonization between countries. Also involved in the document are demands for information sharing, technology transfer and robust investments in research and development, innovation and production.

The signatories of the declaration highlight that the response difficulties faced by countries in the Global South are worsened by the concentration of global health supply chains in countries in the North, preventing access to health supplies and technologies, such as vaccines, medicines, diagnostic reagents, consumables, medical and personal protective equipment.

For them, countries must work collaboratively, addressing the interests of the Global South with shared responsibilities, adopting an inclusive approach in preparing laws and regulations, and recognizing the sovereignty and differences of each country.

In addition to Fiocruz, the document was signed by the Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers Network (DCVMN), Pasteur Network, West African Health Organization, Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), Instituto Todos pela Saúde (ITpS), Ministry of Health of Brazil, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), Latin American Alliance for Global Health (ALASAG) and Sustainable Health Equity Movement (SHEM).

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