UN General Assembly
2021

First, in order to defeat the pandemic, we must ensure that vaccines are accessible to everyone worldwide. Switzerland is committed to ensuring fair and affordable access to vaccines, treatments and diagnostics. Our country contributes $155 million to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the Gavi COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access Facility Advance Market Commitment initiative for low- and middle-income countries. As the host country of several international health organizations, including the World Health Organization, Switzerland provides resources and promotes reforms that enable effective action in this area. Secondly, the crisis revealed the interdependence of our modern societies and the importance of global value chains, particularly with regard to the provision of essential goods. We need to strengthen their resilience without resorting to protectionist measures that threaten the global economic recovery. The legal framework for international trade must work to enhance legal certainty and predictability even in times of crisis. The World Trade Organization has a key role to play in that regard.