The “Vaccine Equity” event will take the form of a structured discussion on how WTO trade agreements can facilitate the distribution of vaccines in the Global South and what the political and legislative constraints that might cause bottlenecks are.
We are pleased to have Dr. Gabrielle Marceau and Dr. John Hancock join us for this event.
Dr. Gabrielle Marceau, Senior Counsellor in the Research Division (ERSD) of the WTO Secretariat, will introduce the various provisions of the WTO relevant to any pandemic and to Covid-19 in particular, as well as the (central) role that WTO rules, mechanisms and institutions play in winning over the pandemic and recovering economically and socially.
Dr. John Hancock, Head of Policy Development and Strategic Planning at the World Trade Organization, will focus more on the economic and structural challenges that Covid-19 and vaccine distribution pose.
Following their presentations, all participants are encouraged to join a discussion on how to better ensure vaccine distribution in the Global South.
About Open Economics
Open Economics aims to engage in interdisciplinary discussions on current socio-economic topics with students across departments at the Graduate Institute. It was born out of a need for students to criticize and apply a real-world context onto the theories learned in class and seek practical perspectives that extend beyond abstract models.