WTO agrees deals on Covid vaccines and overfishing

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Eliminating patents for Covid vaccines is one of the agreements passed by theWTO.

pledges on health and food security were included in the deals that were negotiated.

Developing countries will be able to produce and export vaccines as a result of the intellectual property waivers for coronaviruses.

It will only last five years.

The director-general of the WTO said the agreements would make a difference to the lives of people around the globe.

The outcomes show that the WTO is able to respond to emergencies.

The two highest profile deals on the table were described as "unprecedented" by Ms Okonjo- Iweala.

The main function of the World Trade Organization is to provide a forum for negotiations to reduce barriers to international commerce and to administer a system of rules governing trade.

All decisions are taken by consensus according to the rules.

A series of demands from India, which sees itself as the champion of poor farmers and fishermen as well as developing countries, appeared set to paralyse talks but accommodations were found, trade sources said.

It is hoped that the accord to curb fishing subsidies will help the fishing industry.

"This is a turning point in addressing one of the key drivers of global over-fishing," said Isabel Jarrett, manager of The Pew Charitable Trusts.

The fisheries agreement did not go as far as the members wanted, according to the UK international trade secretary.

She said that it goes a long way to deliver what our oceans need and all those that are dependent on them.

The deal to allow developing countries to produce and export Covid vaccines had divided the WTO for nearly two years before a version was finally passed.

The agreement barely expands on an existing exemption and is too narrow because it doesn't cover diagnostics.

The co-chairman of the People's Vaccine Alliance said that it was a technocratic fudge aimed at saving reputations.

It was never going to be easy to reach a consensus among the different demands and needs of the different countries.

Talks went into 36 hours of overtime and delegates were squeezed into airless rooms.

It's a victory that many thought would be hard to achieve.

The WTO's relevance as the body setting the rules for global trade is validation of the package.

It also shows its vulnerabilities because of the price.

Pandemic treatments and tests are not covered by the waiving of intellectual property rights. The lifting of restrictions on food exports is limited because of the agreements on fishing subsidies.

Many tricky issues, such as wider agricultural subsidies, are being left to the next conference, while the continuation of tariffs on digital products is temporary.

The deal on Covid jabs is not about waiving intellectual property rights, but it should make it easier for developing countries to export their vaccine production.

The agreements we reached this week may not be perfect but they provide a platform on which we can continue to build.