As requested by Human Rights Council resolution 50/13, the High Commissioner for Human Rights will organize an expert workshop on new developments in ensuring access to medicines, vaccines and other health products in the context of the right of everyone to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. This is the third out of three workshops mandated with a view to presenting a comprehensive report to the Council on the subject matter at the 59th session.

Format and Participants:

The expert workshop will be held in virtual format, via Webex or pre-recorded video messages (see requirements for remote participation and Webex User Guide). No interpretation will be available.

The expert workshop will consist of two sessions. Each session will include presentations from experts followed by a plenary discussion:

• Session 1 (10:00 to 13:00 CET) will focus on new developments and solutions pathways in addressing key challenges to ensure and enhance access to medicines, vaccines and other health products;
• Session 2 (15:00 to 17:00 CET) will focus on regional and cross-regional measures of cooperation and assistance (inter alia in the areas of production, procurement, distribution, pricing, regulatory harmonization, and information-sharing) aimed at enhancing access to medicines, vaccines and other health products.

The discussion will also inform the comprehensive report that OHCHR will present to the Human Rights Council at the fifty-ninth session in June 2025.

Participants shall be invited as experts given their experience and work on access to medicines, vaccines and other health products. The expert workshop will be open to representatives of Member States, the treaty bodies and the special procedures, the United Nations system, academia, national human rights institutions and civil society.

Participants to the virtual consultation must register via Indico .

Only those registered will receive the link to join the event, shortly before it starts. Please remember to indicate in the registration form whether you wish to intervene as a speaker during the Questions & Answers sessions. Registration will close on 20 January 2025.

The Secretariat wishes to remind all participants that the United Nations has zero tolerance for any form of harassment, including sexual harassment. See also the Code of Conduct to prevent harassment, including sexual harassment at UN system events.

• Programme of work
• Concept note
• Save the Date
• Registration
• Panellists' biographies
• Video recording of the virtual expert workshop
• Submissions received to the call for inputs

Statements

Welcome & opening remarks

• Ms. Nada Al-Nashif, UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, OHCHR
  Statement - Video recording
• Mr. Pradeep Wagle, Chief of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Section, OHCHR

Panel I - New developments and solution pathways in addressing key challenges to ensure and enhance access to medicines, vaccines and other health products

• Dr. Katrina Perehudoff, Assistant Professor, University of Amsterdam
• Dr. Viviana Muñoz Tellez Programme Coordinator Health, Intellectual Property and Biodiversity, The South Centre
• Mr. Antony Taubman, former Director Intellectual Property Division, World Trade Organization (WTO)
• Mr. Anand Grover, Senior Advocate, former UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health
• Mr. Deusdedit Mubangizi, Director Health Product Policy and Standards Department, World Health Organization (WHO)
• INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE
  • Malaysia
  • Tampere University
  • UNAIDS

Panel II - Regional and cross-regional measures of cooperation and assistance aimed at enhancing access to medicines, vaccines and other health products

• Ms. Lenias Hwenda, Founder and CEO, Medicines for Africa
• Mr. Miguel Amézquita-Delgado, Technical Officer, Pan American Health Organization
• Dr. Gita Sen, Distinguished Professor and Senior Advisor, Centre on Equity and Social Determinants of Health, Public Health Foundation of India
• Mr. Leonard Rubenstein, Distinguished Professor of the Practice, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Interactive dialogue

• Third World Network

Closing remarks

• Mr. Pradeep Wagle, Chief of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Section, OHCHR