Pandemics and global governance failures

HEALTH systems and governance have historically been tested by pandemics, including the Black Death, the 1918 flu, HIV/AIDS and SARS. This dynamic has become more intense in the twenty-first century. Infectious threats transcend borders, as demonstrated by COVID-19 and later outbreaks like Mpox and new SARS-Co V-2 variants, but national responses are frequently disjointed. COVID-19 brought to light a significant failing: the global community’s struggle to produce and distribute vaccines fairly. According to a 2023 study on global manufacturing, eight out of every ten vaccine doses were distributed to high-income countries, meaning just 18% of people in low-income nations received a single dose. A small number of countries dominate vaccine production, with Africa and South America producing under 5% of non-COVID vaccines. Wealthy nations acquired the majority of the supply during the crisis via advance purchase agreements and export controls. India, despite being a major vaccine producer, implemented bans on exporting vaccines and essential materials. The combination of these policies and “vaccine nationalism” resulted in insufficient supply for multilateral mechanisms such as COVAX. Because access was not immediate, the virus was able to keep spreading and evolving. Insufficient communication about risks worsened pandemic responses. According to the WHO, an infodemic, characterized by an overabundance of information that is false or misleading, leads to confusion, encourages risky actions, erodes trust in institutions and can worsen epidemics. Fragile health systems and inequalities represented vulnerability. The pandemic agreement, approved by the World Health Assembly in May 2025, admitted that COVID-19 highlighted “gaps and inequities” in the world’s preparedness. The agreement mandates enhanced disease monitoring, stronger healthcare infrastructure and personnel, increased research, technology sharing for domestic manufacturing, clearer public health messages and