Chattu Vijay Kumar, Pooransingh Shalini, Allahverdipour Hamid
Division of Occupational Medicine, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada.
Institute of International Relations, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago.
Health Promot Perspect. 2021 Feb 7;11(1):1-4. doi: 10.34172/hpp.2021.01. eCollection 2021.
Global health diplomacy has gained significant importance and undoubtedly remained high on the agendas of many nations, regional and global platforms amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Many countries have realized the importance of the health sector and the value of a healthy workforce. However, there is little control on issues related to trade that impact on human health due to the dominance of profit-oriented business lobbies. A balance, however, needs to be struck between economic profits and a healthy global population. This paper aimed to highlight the importance of building capacity in global health diplomacy, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic so that health personnel may effectively negotiate on the multisectoral stage to secure the resources they need. The recent proposal to waive off certain provisions of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement for the prevention, containment and treatment of COVID-19 by India and South Africa at the World Trade Organization (WTO) presents an important opportunity for all governments to unite and stand up for public health, global solidarity, and equitable access at the international level so that both developed and developing nations may enjoy improved health outcomes related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
在2019冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行期间，全球卫生外交变得极为重要，无疑在许多国家、区域和全球平台的议程上占据高位。许多国家已经认识到卫生部门的重要性以及健康劳动力的价值。然而，由于以利润为导向的商业游说团体占据主导地位，对影响人类健康的贸易相关问题几乎没有控制。然而，需要在经济利润与全球健康人口之间取得平衡。本文旨在强调建设全球卫生外交能力的重要性，特别是在COVID-19大流行期间，以便卫生人员能够在多部门舞台上有效谈判，以获取所需资源。印度和南非近期在世界贸易组织（WTO）提出的关于豁免《与贸易有关的知识产权协定》（TRIPS）某些条款以预防、遏制和治疗COVID-19的提议，为各国政府团结起来、在国际层面支持公共卫生、全球团结和公平获取提供了一个重要契机，从而使发达国家和发展中国家都能在与COVID-19大流行相关的健康成果方面有所改善。
