COVID-19 Vaccine Rights Waiver Within Reach, WTO Chief Says Ahead of Meeting

WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala attends an event on World Ocean Day ahead of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference (MC12) where a deal to end harmful fisheries subsidies could be reached in Geneva, on June 8, 2022. Denis Balibouse/Reuters

GENEVA—An international agreement on waiving intellectual property rights for COVID-19 vaccines is within reach ahead of a global trade meeting next week, the head of the World Trade Organization (WTO) said on Wednesday.

In a telephone interview, Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala also said an agreement could be reached on fishing subsidies in time for the meeting, when 120 trade ministers from around the world gather at the body’s Geneva headquarters.