The World Trade Organization closed two-day meetings on pandemic response policies that included a proposal to temporarily wave COVID vaccine patents.

Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of the religious development organization Jubilee USA Network and a United Nations finance expert, releases the following statement on the World Trade Organization meetings:

“We must act quickly to increase vaccine production and ensure everyone can access COVID-19 vaccines, tests and treatments.

"Unfortunately, the WTO failed to agree on a temporary patent waiver.

“Waiving pharmaceutical patents is necessary for more countries to produce and procure COVID vaccines and ultimately end the pandemic.

“World leaders fail to act and millions of people will suffer and die because they can't access vaccines."

Read the statement here.